Bridging the Gap: linking timber trade with infrastructural ...

arks at TZS 2000 (USD 1.95) per kg and medical plants at TZS 500 (USD 0.49) per kg. These fees are
payable for all timber and products harvested from Forest Reserves. In open land, fees are only payable
for 24 of the most threatened tree species.
Table 36
Forestry levies paid for timber in Tanzania, 1997-2002 (TZS per m 3 )
Class Before 1997 5/1997 to 6/2000 7/2000 to 2/2001 3/2001 to 5/2002
I 50 000 60 000 70 000 70 000
II 20 000 25 000 50 000 40 000
III 10 000 15 000 30 000 30 000
IV 7 500 7 500 15 000 15 000
V 3 000 3 000 10 000 10 000
Source: Anon. (2002f).
Fees from plantations are lower with log fees for wood at TZS 1500-12 000 (USD 1.46-11.71) per m 3
(except Tectona grandis and Juniperus procera which cost up to TZS 50 000 (USD 48.78) per m 3 ),
firewood at TZS 500-1000 (USD 0.49-0.98) per m 3 and poles at TZS 200-300 (USD 0.20-0.29) per m 3 .
Royalties, according to the Forests (Amendment) Rules (Anon., 2001i), for wood harvested from central
government Forest Reserves are sent to the Forest and Beekeeping Division headquarters in Dar es
Salaam. District authorities retain royalties collected from wood harvested in district authority Forest
reserves according to their by-laws. For example, district council levies paid at Kibiti checkpoint (Rufiji
District) include TZS 150 (USD 0.15) per piece of sawn wood (12’x1’x1”), TZS 1,000 (USD 0.98) per
piece of furniture, TZS 30 (USD 0.03) per bag of charcoal, and a 50% levy on central government
royalties paid on all logs.
Checkpoints are normally stationed at administrative boundaries for the purpose of monitoring and
collecting harvest revenues on specified agricultural products and natural resources. In the case of forest
products, officers are supposed to ensure that the transported products match the accompanying harvest
licence(s). Considerable variation exists between checkpoints in terms of their mandate, manpower and
capacity. For example, checkpoints may be under the auspice of the central government, regional
government, district government, village government, or a combination of the above. Checkpoints tend
to specialize in collecting revenue for specific products, often from only one direction. In the case of
forest products, very few checkpoints are staffed by skilled forestry officers. These factors contribute to
losses of government revenue, as well as contribute to the high variation in the quality of records kept.
According to the Forest Act of 2002, maximum penalties for offences in forest reserves include a TZS
one million fine and/or two years imprisonment. Penalties are compoundable but may not exceed five
times the maximum fine. In Rufiji District, fines for defaulters on forest royalty payments are set at five
times the official value of the forest produce (Anon., 2002f).
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