The Asia-Pacific Region is undergoing a rapid transformation due to fast economic development. There are social and economic changes that exert pressures on the forest resources of the region and, at the same time, some changes are creating new opportunities for forests and trees to contribute to development. In order to assess changes affecting the forest sector, their trends and prospects for the future, FAO has proposed an outlook study for the forestry sector to the year 2010. This proposal was welcomed by the Asia Pacific Forestry Commission at its sixteenth Session in Yangon, January 1996. This thematic study forms part of a series and was conducted analyzing all relevant and available documents at FAO Headquarters.
The Asia Pacific Forestry Outlook study has the overall function of assessing the status trends and outlook for the Forestry Sector to 2010. Implementation will involve the collection of specific studies, which will then be assembled for the final report. This thematic study provides a description of the current consumption, utilization and trade of rubberwood and rubberwood products in main producing countries and of the likely market prospects for rubberwood products.
