Improving the Competitiveness of the Timber and Wood Sector in Mozambique
Mozambique has an abundance of natural forests. Natural forests with production capacity are estimated to cover approximately 20 million hectares, or 24 percent of the total country. Despite this extensive natural resource, the forestry sector is perceived to be underperforming in terms of both sustainable management of resource and in the development of an economically viable and competitive processing industry. The USAID-funded Trade and Investment project is supporting the Confederation of Mozambican Business Associations (CTA) to improve the performance of the sector, and if possible, create sustainable export-oriented processing in the sector. The objectives of this study are to:
- Identify constraints on environmentally sustainable production and management of forestry and wood products;
- Find ways to promote both the export of wood products and the conservation and environmentally sustainable production of forests and wood, and develop related policy recommendations; and
- Assist in developing recommendations to implement forestry and wildlife regulations transparently and effectively.
The review focused on five strategic issues relating to sustainability and competitiveness—policy and regulations, resource and log harvesting, processing, governance in the forestry sector, and plantation forestry. The findings and recommendations on these five issues are summarized below.