Ghana to increase annual harvest

Ghana is raising its annual allowable log harvest from 1 million m³ to 2 million m³ as part of moves to support the timber industry, according to the latest International Tropical Timber Organisation market report.

The harvesting increase is intended to make more wood available to the industry, while the waiving of import levies on logs will allow the processing industry to run at a higher capacity.

A medium-term strategy also sees a voluntary agreement between the government and entrepreneurs to retool inefficient processing mills, boosting utilization of raw material and reducing waste.

Long-term measures to increase wood supply will involve increasing the timber plantation area by 30,000ha annually.

Research will also be conducted on lesser-used timber species.