With international aid…...GFC pushing furniture manufacture from lesser known woods

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With international aid…
GFC pushing furniture manufacture from lesser known woods

Guyana Chronicle
18 April 2007

THE International Tropical Timber Organisation (ITTO), working in
partnership with the Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC) and the Forest
Products Marketing Council (FPMC), is funding an initiative to promote
lesser used wood species.

The objective is to reduce demand for popular species, the Government
Information Agency (GINA) said.

GINA said local furniture manufacturers have expressed willingness to
utilise some of the less known types but are inhibited by the
inaccessibility of supplies and lack of technical information.

Consequently, the current project is intended to fill this gap by
providing data that would help stakeholders identify necessary criteria
for processing and marketing activities.

The 12-month exercise, which started in February, is part of the GFC
drive to ensure sustainable forestry operations and continued
development of the sector, GINA explained.

It said testing the lesser used woods at laboratories overseas,
promotional events and training people in the business on wood
properties are the main components of the scheme which is being funded
at a cost of about US$95,000.

GINA said Guyana has about 1,000 varieties of wood but the over
reliance on six is putting pressure on the forest resources and it
namedlimonimonaballi, huruasa, sarebebeballi, suya, black kakaralli
and kautaballi as some of the lesser used ones.

GFC is undertaking other activities to achieve the aim of strengthening
its inventory software in forest resources management and expanding the
scope of its monitoring operations, at both existing and newly
established locations, is also being done, GINA said.

It said 21 stations to monitor are situated countrywide, with the
newest being at Annai in Region Nine (Upper Takutu/Upper Essequibo) and
GFC is now reviewing the establishment of additional stations
elsewhere.

GFC is awaiting, as well, approval from the ITTO, of a remote sensing
and dark coding project, that targets the use of modern tracking
devices to combat illegal logging.

The technology is being used in many South American countries,
including neighbouring Brazil, GINA said, adding that the forestry
sector contributes about six per cent to the Gross Domestic Product
(GDP) locally and employs about 25,000 people.

It plays a significant role in the country’s development, too,
particularly in the rural and hinterland communities where forestry
activities generate income for many households, GINA said.