3. Nigerian wood products data bases

The most tested and viable option for wood product data collection in Nigeria is through investigations and enumeration. These essentially entail the design and administration of questionnaires by field staff usually this is supported by personal visits and interviews of factory and management staff of the various factories essentially to clarify and validate reported data.

Another method involves sending letters to State Forestry Departments through their Directors requesting them to furnish available information to the Federal Department of Forestry. Telephones and radio links are also adopted. Forestry statistics are also collected from progress reports from states and other institutions during National Forestry Development Committee (NFDC) meetings. Field Offices in addition do submit monthly, quarterly and annual reports and expenditure returns, which are essential sources of forestry statistics. Reliance is also placed on proceedings from seminars, workshop, symposium and conferences such as the Forestry Association of Nigeria. Other secondary data are collected from relevant publications.

3.1.1. Existing Methods of Data Processing and Validation

Data processing includes data compilation, validation and dissemination. Data processing usually starts with editing and coding of survey results into appropriate data bases and this is either followed by manual or computer processing. Sorting them into various databases, ranging from statistical bulletins to computer based databases or output. Sorting is done first by industry and then by products. The mean production levels are computed for the various products based on the sample size and the method of sampling adopted. Once this has been achieved, the means are projected to aggregate levels depending on the sampling frame for the respective industries.

Computer software’s have come in handy with processing of survey results. In particular D-BASE IV and SPSS have been useful. In terms of processing returns from State field offices, LOTUS 123 have been handy with creating quick tables and charts. However, because of the scarcity of computers, most data processing at Forestry Headquarters are done by pocket and table calculators.

Validation is built into the administered questionnaires. The same questions on production are asked in different ways as checks on the consistency of the respondents. A questionnaire may require of the respondent the estimated volume of sawn-wood produced in the previous year in one question. The answer can be crosschecked from the total working days in the year and the average size and number of logs processed each day etc. When the error is very significant then such results are either ignored or compared with others. In some cases, the respondents are approached for further clarifications. Moreover, given the recovery rates and the volume of saw log, it is expected that the volume of sawn-wood produced cannot be greater than the volume of round wood. This is validation at the level of sample surveys.

At another level, many of the wood based forestry statistics published by different agencies on the Nigerian Forestry Sector since the 1990’s were either estimates or from unofficial sources. This requires verification and validation. Too often, there are no official effective mechanisms for verifying and validating these data in Nigeria. However, there are a few genuine reports from organised survey results and these are often the basis for determining the reliability of such estimates. For example, it will be foolhardy to expect that newsprint production that reached low ebb of 3,000 Mt. in 1993 as indicated in the FDF survey of 1994, will suddenly jump to say 60,000 Mt. in 1994. Such a data will be suspect.

In this study, conscious effort is made to report all the available authentic data on wood products and in updating FAO statistics, the authentic data is used. FAO statistics will be left where better alternatives do not exist. The FAO statistics remain the most reliable available source of Forestry statistics. This is because where most are estimated from unofficial sources and forecasts, the fact remains that where authentic data existed, they have found their way into FAO databases.

The final stage of data processing is dissemination. At this stage, the product becomes input for the users. Of late, the Federal Department of Forestry has not published any statistical bulletin on wood products. What exist are the various terminal reports on the respective studies carried out. In addition, the Department publishes annually a progress report on its activities. Most of what is disseminated in terms of Forestry Statistics are done by means of leaflets, table, papers, memos and reports.

3.1.2. Wood industry of Nigeria: A Situation Report.

The position of the wood industry in Nigeria has been extensively covered in the overview to this paper. It is worthy to emphasise that the most important wood products, produced, consumed and traded in Nigeria are Non-coniferous hard woods, Sawn-wood, plywood, particle board, news-print, printing and writing paper and other paper boards (Kraft paper).

3.1.3. Round-wood

Round-wood production in Nigeria comes mostly from the natural high forest zone of the country, in particular from the Southern States of Cross River, Edo, Ogun, Ondo and Oyo States of Nigeria. Round wood is no longer exported from Nigeria since this has been placed on ban since 1976. The round-wood produced in Nigeria is mainly non-coniferous hardwood. There are no authentic series on it since the 1990s’. However, the Central Bank published estimates are reported with FAO’s forecasts for comparison. It must be noted that round-wood statistics includes industrial round wood, poles and fuelwood.

Table 1: Round wood Production (‘000 m³)

The series are close and FAO’s estimated appear good enough. The figures that are not marked F are not forecast and represent data from unofficial source.

3.1.4. Sawn-wood

Sawn-wood is produced by sawmills in Nigeria whose capacity is estimated at 11,684,00 m³ per year in log, equivalent.

The estimated capacity and production of sawmills in the 1993 field survey by FDF is presented in Table 2.

Table 2: Sawmills-Estimated Capacity and Production in 1993

The industry has a few large integrated mills among which are the African Timber and Plywood, Sapele, Piedmont at Ologbo, Premier Timber Industry Akure, Seromwood Industry, Calabar, Iyayi Brothers, Benin City and others. Most of the sawmills have depreciated and are suffering from obsolescence. The major problem is lack of spare parts. By 1997, the number of sawmills have declined from 1700 in 1993 to 1349.

Production statistics on sawn-wood are not recorded by any deliberate effort. The last survey of forest industries was recorded in 1993. Central Bank Estimates are compared with FAO’s in Table 3.

Table 3: Sawn-wood Production (m3)

*Field Survey (1993)

CBN’s estimate is first an understatement of the actual production in 1993. The direction of subsequent estimate does not reflect the true trend. FAO also does not portray the real trend in sawn-wood production. The revised estimates portray a better picture of the industry whose production had been declining due to old equipment and shortage of spare parts, frequent electrical power supply interruptions and a declining timber supply both in volume of logs and quality.

3.1.5. Plywood

Plywood consumption in Nigeria had been increasing through time. It increased from 179,000m³ in 1990 to 285,000m³ by 2000 (FDF 1994). There were eight plywood and veneer mills in the country in 1992 with a total capacity of 126,000 m³ while their aggregate production was 72,240 m³ as revealed by Field Survey Commissioned by FDF in 1993. By 1997, the numbers of Ply mills have increased to ten with an estimated capacity of 158,000 m³ and production of 55,125 m³.

Most of these mills are integrated complexes both to sawmills and particleboard mills. Among the mills now operating in Nigeria are African Timber and Plywood, Piedmont, Nigeria Romania Wood Industrial, Seromwood Industry and others.

Like the other wood products, there are no authentic time series since 1990. However, we shall present the FAO statistics and revised estimates.

Table: 4 Plywood Production (m³)

*From Field Surveys.

The import of plywood which peaked at about 70,000 m³ in 1980 had gradually reduced to about 20,000 m³ in 1990 the figure is estimated to have increased slightly due to the present exigencies of the plywood.

3.1.6. Particle Board (m3)

The four particle board mills operating in Nigeria are the African Timber and Plywood Co. Ltd, Predmont Co. Ltd, Seromowood Industry Ltd and Nigerian Romanian Wood Industry Ltd. They have a total capacity of 85,500 m³. In 1992, their joint output was 39,5000 m³.

Particleboard requirements in Nigeria are estimated at 108,000 m³ in 1990 and are expected to reach 199,000m³ in 2000. The particle board industry has remained stagnant over the past decade, due to uncertain investment climate. The estimated production trend is given in Table 5, while Table 6 show the estimates for wood based panels.

Table 5: ParticleBoard Production (m³)

Table 6: Wood Based Panels (m³)

3.1.7. Pulp and Paper

The three Pulp and Paper Mills now operating in Nigeria are the Nigerian Newsprint Manufacturing Company (NNMC) Oku-Iboku with a paper capacity of 100,000 Mt/year, the Nigerian Paper Mill (NPM), Jebba with a capacity of 77,000 mt/year and the Nigerian National Paper Manufacturing Company Ltd (NNPMC), Iwopin with an existing capacity of 30,000 mt/year. The type of paper produced in Nigeria includes Newsprint, Printing and writing Paper and Paperboards. Their production trends are shown in Table 7.

Table 7: Paper Production (Mt)

Na = not available Source: FDF field surveys.

Paper and paperboard imports are quite high in Nigeria reaching over 120,000 mt in 1997. It is expected that the import of paper and paperboard will remain high in the near future.