FAO Forestry country profiles - forest management

Issues and concerns

The overriding forestry concern in the Solomon Islands is unsustainable logging and the economic, environmental and social implications arising from this. During the past decade, the timber industry has annually contributed around 20 percent of government revenues, and often more than 50 percent of export revenues. The forestry sector is extremely important to the national economy, with the timber industry accounting for nearly 80 percent of government revenue, 78 percent of total national revenue and providing employment for over 10 000 workers. Reducing the logging rate would therefore cause a drastic reduction in national income. Conversely, if logging rates continue at current levels, merchantable forests will, in any case, be logged out in the next decade, with accompanying environmental degradation. A weak administrative capacity and lack of resources limits the ability of the Solomon Islands government to respond to these challenges. A range of other challenges and problems are associated with unsustainable logging including: a lack of education and training programmes and facilities, geographic dispersion of the islands causing transportation and communications challenges, problems associated with land tenure (including those related to collective and conflicting ownership), and the desire by indigenous people to reap the economic benefits available from logging.