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

eported to be very low, with most sourced from Utete area and Kilwa District.
The total volume of round wood processed by these three sawmills during 2001 was, therefore, estimated
at 4112 m 3 .
Kibiti checkpoint
Kibiti checkpoint is the first official checkpoint north of the Rufiji River. It is strategically located at the
intersection of two roads that theoretically supply all timber (and other goods) moving north towards Dar
es Salaam. It is, therefore, of national importance in terms of monitoring and revenue collection. Whilst
a significant proportion of the wood products (especially sawn wood and large logs) do pass through
Kibiti checkpoint, in reality, many vehicles bypass the checkpoint using smaller roads to avoid payment
of village and district timber levies. This highlights the enormous challenges already faced by authorities,
a situation that will only be exacerbated after the Mkapa Bridge is opened. Official records were
collected from Kibiti checkpoint for 2001, which tend to be handwritten ledger books containing vehicle
and harvest licence details in addition to actual timber volumes. It should be noted that deficiencies in
staff capacity (particularly numbers of personnel, skill levels and motivation) result in inaccuracies and
frequent underestimation of timber products.
During 2001, a total of 8608 m 3 round wood equivalent of logs and planks were recorded at Kibiti
checkpoint (Table 12). Due to the high turnover from the Ikwiriri sawmills, planks outweighed logs
(1:1.6), driven by the lower royalties paid for sawn wood when compared to uncut logs (Figure 9). It is
notable how much higher the ratio between sawn wood and logs was at Ndundu ferry crossing (1:5.8)
than at Kibiti checkpoint (1:1.6). One would expect the reverse since many planks are produced from
Ikwiriri sawmills. The discrepancy is believed to be attributable to large-scale illegal and unrecorded
trade in planks. More small logs were recorded at Kibiti checkpoint than large logs since the Ikwiriri
sawmills purchase most of the large logs. Further, smaller operators are reportedly felling undersize
trees, as well as returning to previously felled trees to collect remaining branches (‘off-cuts’).
Table 12
Quantities of timber products recorded at Kibiti checkpoint, 2001
Description Volume (m 3 ) Description Volume (m 3 )
Planks 5 312.1 m 3 Logs, large 944.1 m 3
Logs, small 2 001.4 m 3 Logs, unspecified 350.6 m 3
Source: Kibiti checkpoint records, 2001.
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