African forest sector outlook
The Quarterly Edition, 2024-Q1 of the Forest Sector Outlook produced by the Global Consulting Alliance is fascinating.
This excerpt from the latest edition is a brief synopsis of developments in Africa’s forestry sector.
The African Development Bank’s Macroeconomic Performance and Outlook report, published in January 2024, projects economic growth for the continent of 3.8% in 2024 and 4.2% in 2025. Due to deeper regional integration and strategic public spending, East Africa’s economy is projected to increase the most of all regions, with projected growth of 5.1% in 2024 and 5.7% in 2025. It is estimated that Africa will account for 11 out of the 20 fastest-growing economies in the world in 2024. At a recent International Day of Forests webinar by the African Development Bank, Africa’s timber trade deficit was highlighted.
Between 1992 and 2020, Africa accrued a timber trade deficit of USD 65 billion. This results from the imbalance between earnings from mostly unprocessed log exports and imports of processed wood products.
Rwanda is the latest country to consider strict regulations on harvesting trees, in this case, restrictions on harvesting “immature trees” with a diameter at breast height of less than 20cm. There is a growing trend amongst African countries to support timber processing versus the export of unprocessed logs.
The growing interest amongst Southern and East African countries in mass timber production is in line with this processing trend. The recently held 2024 Wood Conference in Cape Town highlighted the role of mass timber in construction and its role not only as a carbon store but also as a way of adding value and creating economic incentives (Ed – read the report in the February issue of WoodBiz Africa).
The first turbine of the new Julius Nyerere Hydropower Plant in Tanzania was switched on in February 2024. The power station is expected to have an installed capacity of 2 115 megawatts. It will contribute substantially to electricity production in this country.
An increase in electrification is associated with increased electricity production, which could increase the demand for transmission poles.
Miro Forestry and Timber Products has received a USD 24 million equity investment from the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC). The investment aims to enhance Miro’s forestry operations in Ghana and Sierra Leone.
In December 2023, Criterion Africa Partners completed an investment in Mozambique Fibra Lda (MozFibra), a subsidiary of Mozambique Tree Framing Pty Ltd. This investment is targeted at developing and improving MozFibra’s wood export operations through the port of Beira.
Operations are slowly recovering after the devastating fire that affected NCT’s Richards Bay woodchip operations in October 2023. It is expected to take much time before operations are back to normal. Still, NCT has started to accumulate woodchips for future shipments using mobile chippers.
Total woodchip exports through the ports of Richards Bay and Durban in South Africa for January and February 2024 were ~264 000 Mt, compared to ~291 000 Mt for the same period in 2023. Pulp exports have decreased from ~197 000 ADt to ~139 000 ADt when comparing January to February 2024 to the same period in 2023.
Gabon has launched a cutting-edge timber traceability system. The new system, which is mandatory for all logging and wood processing companies operating in Gabon, tracks timber products throughout the supply chain using mobile apps, web apps, and geo-location data. The system is the result of collaboration between the Gabonese government, the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA), and Code4NatureIt.
Source: WoodBiz Magazine – April 2024 (page 3)
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