Panels & Furniture Asia May/June 2020

ADVERTORIAL
42 | MATERIALS
Aerial view of Gabon’s Furniture
May / June 2020, Issue 3 | Panels & Furniture Manufacturing Asia Cluster
Gabon Forest, a sustainably
managed resource
Gabon lies on the equator in the central west part of Africa, bordering the Atlantic Ocean to
the west, Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea to the north and the Republic of the Congo to the
southeast. It is a picturesque country with rich natural resources.
Gabon’s climate is classified as equatorial tropical, with an
extensive rainforest system covering 22.8 million hectares
i.e. almost 88 per cent of the territory. There are three
major forest types:
• evergreen rainforest in the west characterised by abundance
of Okoumé and Ozigo
• the central Gabonese forest covering most of the country with
abundance of species like Azobé and Ayous
• semi-deciduous forest with dominance of Limba, Wenge and Ayous
With a low overall population density and 60 per cent of its
population living in urban areas, there is little anthropogenic
pressure on Gabon's forests. The Gabon government has
indicated an average annual deforestation rate of 0.12 per cent
or 10,000 ha per year. All forests in Gabon is owned by the state.
The 2001 Forest Code divides forest into two categories i.e. First
Category (13.5 million hectares) include Production Permanent
Forest Estate (PFE) managed by private concessionaires and
the protection PFE managed directly by the state. The Second
Category (8.3 million hectares) belongs to the non-PFE, known
as domaine rural, includes open access forest for hunting,
agriculture, mining and gathering of NTFPs, sacred forests and
community protected area for which rights are limited to local
communities.
NEW SUSTAINABLE FOREST MANAGEMENT LAW
Gabon has gone through structural reforms affecting the forest
and timber processing industry. The new forest law emphasises on
Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) as the overall approach in
forest harvesting. Forest management plans are fully developed
for over 9.25 million hectares of forest in concessions and were
under preparation for another 2.5 million hectares of forest in
concessions since 2011. An estimated 8.42 million hectares of
the natural production PFE is under SFM, including 3.37 million
hectares of forest were certified under the FSC (some of them
also had ISO 14001 and Keurhout certificates) as of June 2010.
Gabon’s low deforestation rate and forests rich in valuable
timber species are among the best prospects for a healthy and
sustainable forest and timber processing industry. Reforestation
has been continuously promoted, and selective thinning and
clearing have prevented the over exploitation. Over 50 firms are
engaged in the harvesting of Gabon’s forests. Forest concessions
covering about 12 million hectares have been granted by the
Gabonese Republic. The timber industry of Gabon already
represents an extremely significant growth potential.
A WIDE ARRAY OF TIMBER SPECIES FROM GABON
Gabon's forests offer enormous possibilities with a logging
potential of 12.5 million hectares with more than 400 species.
Until 2010, i.e. before ban on export of raw logs, Gabon was
the largest exporter of raw wood in the region, and its sale
represents 20 per cent of Africa’s raw wood exports. Gabon’s
reserves of exploitable timber is estimated to be upwards of 400
million cubic metres which includes 130 million m 3 of Okoumé,
15-25 million m 3 of Azobé and 10-20 million m 3 of Padouk.