According to them, the non-compliance of the law was hampering the regular supply of lumber and gradually kicking most carpenters out of business in the area.
At a sensitization forum to kick-start an advocacy programme with support from the Business Sector Advocacy Challenge (BUSAC) Fund, the workers said they wanted to promote the removal of bottlenecks in accessing raw materials for their businesses.
They said that had started engaging interest groups in the Asnate Akyem North and South districts to address their challenges. Speaking at the forum, various wood workers from Juaso, Obogfu and Ofoase as well as forestry officials, identified the need for a licensing and regulated regime based on a multi-stakeholder dialogue at the local levels to promote sustainable chainsaw lumbering.
Mr. Isaac Owusu Boakye of Juaso Forestry Division said illegal chainsaw operations were thriving because many timber firms were not complying with the 20 per cent allocation of lumber to the local market.
He said operational problems and tax challenges to many of the timber companies, which resulted in high costs of production ad high costs of lumber, could be the cause of the problem. Mr. Owusu Boakye expressed the hope that a better regulatory framework for chainsaw operations could be instituted to replace the ban on chainsaw logging.
Nana Ansu Adane Kofrobour II, a business service provider to the advocacy, said the law as it operated currently had become counter productive to forest sustainability.
He said the long-term objective of the advocacy initiative was to afford wood workers the ability to obtain permits to log for their operations and contribute to forest sustainability.
He said by so doing, the problems in the timber industry could be reduced to improve the economic status of carpenters while complementing government’s efforts at reducing poverty.
Source: Daily Graphic February 9th, 2009Story by: ENoch Darfah Frimpong, Juaso
