|
Govt urged to halt export of unprocessed wood
The Lao wood processing industry expects to face a shortage of raw materials this year if the government continues to export unprocessed timber.
 |
| Lao-made wooden furniture has found an appreciative market in China. |
Lao Wooden Products Association President Mr Thongsavanh Souliyamath made the comment yesterday after the government announced a decision to postpone its logging quota, which could slow the supply of timber to the domestic wood processing industry.
The government still has a policy to allow felling of trees in development project areas, such as road construction sites, and mining and hydropower plant development areas. However, most of the unprocessed timber extracted from these areas is sold to neighbouring countries.
Mr Thongsavanh, who is also the managing director of the Lao Furniture Industry Company in Vientiane, said association members would like the government to halt the export of unprocessed timber and instead sell the stocks to the domestic wood processing industry, which is experiencing a shortage.
“We have learnt that there is about 300,000 cubic metres of timber from development project areas,” he told Vientiane Times .
He explained that the wood processing industry has the capacity to process this amount of timber, so the government should supply the raw materials for processors to add value to the country's natural resources prior to export.
Mr Thongsavanh said Laos can benefit more from supplying unprocessed wood to domestic firms than exporting it, because processed timber can generate more income than unprocessed wood.
Building up the industry in Laos would also create more jobs.
At present, there are about 1,000 small and large wood processing plants nationwide, employing more than 20,000 workers. About 100 of these units are members of the Lao Wooden Products Association, which operates under the umbrella of the Lao National Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
A number of factories have markets in China after attending trade exhibitions in the country. Some have invested in new technologies in order to make more efficient use of wood in line with government policy.
According to a study on timber supply in Laos carried out by the Global Forestry Service Inc, Laos exported about 640 billion kip (US$80 million) worth of semi-finished and finished timber-based products last fiscal year.
The major importers of Lao timber are Thailand with a trading value of about US$22 million, Vietnam with a trading value of US$11 million, and Japan with a trading value of US$4.5 million.
The European Union and Australia also imported Lao timber products worth US$147,579 and US$151,691 respectively.
vientiane times
|
