4. Economic Contribution of the Forestry Sector

It is estimated that there is an average of about 46.9 m³ per hectare of wood volume in the 11 SADC countries which translates to 7137.9 million m³ of wood in the forests of the SADC countries where the total forested area is 152.2 million ha (Table 4). South Africa produces 67% of the region’s total round wood and sawn timber production while Zimbabwe contributes 18.9% and the remainder of less than 15% is from the rest of the SADC countries. Assuming that all the timber which is exported or imported would not be among the 11 SADC countries, the region would be a net exporter of about 241 000 m³ of round-wood and 42 000 m³ of sawn timber (Table 4). In South Africa, the exotic forest plantation contributes 1.8% to the country’s GDP and employs about 110 000 people. In Zimbabwe the forestry sector employs 14 500 people and contributes 3% to the GDP. In Swaziland, the forestry sector contributes 25% of the country’s foreign exchange earnings (Dlamini, 2002).

Other than industrial roundwood, fuelwood is probably the most important forest product in almost all the 11 SADC countries, especially among the rural communities. All the 11 SADC countries consume approximately 96.1 million cubic metres of fuelwood annually (Table 4). In Botswana, for example, 83% of the households use firewood for cooking and the total amount used annually is estimated at 1.57 million m³. In Mozambique, 85% of its energy consumption is from wood where 70% of its rural population use firewood as an energy source. In South Africa, fuelwood consumption per annum is valued at US$100 million while in Namibia, it is estimated at US$13.1 million (DWAF, 1997; Hailwa, 1999).

Table 4: Production, trade and utilization of primary forest products

e = estimate, na = not available *source FAO, 2001

South Africa also dominates in the production of the other processed forest products such as wood-based panels, pulp, paper and paperboard, which it accounts for 83%, 86.3% and 96.7% respectively of the region’s production (Table 5). In terms of export, assuming that the exports and imports are all outside the region, then the 11 SADC countries are a net importer of wood-based panels but are a net exporter of the other products (Table 5).

Table 5: Production and trade of processed forest products

Prod. = production; na = not available; source FAO (2001)