| April 1997 | FO: ACPWP 97/4 |
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Example from a developing country - Congo |
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Interpretation of the socio-economic role of forest industry,
in Africa or in any other continent, will differ as long as there
is lack of agreement on social and economic priorities. To better
illustrate the problem, a presentation will be made on the forest
company SOCOBOIS. The operations are located in the town of Dolisie
in the south of the Republic of Congo. Until 1972-73 Dolisie
was the El dorado for forestry companies. In 1974, forestry
activities stagnate and companies started leaving the country.
Socobois, conducting a policy of sustainable management and promoting
the sustainable use of forests, is today the only company left
in the region. It provides about 1 000 jobs, or 70 percent of
the total income of a town of 60 000 inhabitants. In the long
run, and particularly in developing countries, the wood industry
can significantly contribute to solving socio-economic problems
by generating employment and income, and also by introducing new
knowledge and technology. Industrialization, based on sustainable
forest management, is the indispensable support to combat poverty
and malnutrition.
Introduction
Dolisie, a Town of 60 000 Inhabitants
Development of Dolisie between 1974 and 1996
The town of Dolisie is the administrative centre
of the Niari region. It is situated about 200 km by road (poor
driving conditions) to the north-east of the port of Pointe Noire.
Until 1972/73, Dolisie was the most important logging
town in the Congo. It was an eldorado for forest enterprises
and wood buyers at that time. The best year was 1971 when more
than 500 000 m3 of logs were loaded at Dolisie's
small railway station. Many companies were represented there and
the town and the 25 000 inhabitants at that time enjoyed
a real boom.
From 1974 onward, forestry activities began to
stagnate. Little by little, one company after another closed its
gates. The agents, the representatives of Caterpillar and Mercedez-Benz
and a large number of forestry enterprises and carriers left the
town.
Since then the town has been dying economically
but experiencing an increase in the population which has now reached
more than 60 000 inhabitants, being 2.6 times higher than
in 1974.
Four of the five sawmills are closed, only one is
working.
SOCOBOIS, situated at 6 km from Dolisie, is
the only company that developed in this area.
The socio-economic problems that exist in Dolisie
can also be found in the rest of the country, as well as in most
parts of the neighbouring countries.
From a maximum of about 4 400 regular employment
contracts 10 to 15 years ago, there are now only about 2 600 to
2 700.
In 1983, for example, a new 250-bed hospital was
opened, equipped with the most up-to-date technology at a cost
of US$ 25 000 000. Unfortunately, no plans had been
made for a revolving fund or to train the technical and medical
staff. The present state of the hospital can be imagined.
It should be noted that the town of Dolisie or the
Niari region have no regular income since all taxes, dues and
duties go to the capital, Brazzaville. Only with difficulty a
small share returns to Dolisie. As a result, the people and the
town live on the workers' wages and it is hardly surprising that
a SOCOBOIS employee may be financially responsible for more than
20 people.
Except from SOCOBOIS, there are no major industrial
or other activities and opportunities for employment.
Dolisie is the third largest town in the Congo with
60 000 inhabitants, after the capital Brazzaville with 950 000,
and the economic and port town Pointe Noire with 500 000
inhabitants, all three together have 60 percent of the national
population which is 2.5 million people. Considering the other
small towns, the Congolese urbanisation, with more than 70 percent,
is the highest in Africa reflecting the very poor rural development.
Some figures may give a better understanding of
the national situation:
Congo area: 342 000 sq.km, of which 62 percent
is covered by forests, mostly dense.
Population: 2.52 million in 1994 which is 2.6 times
more than 20 years ago, and certainly 4.0 million in 2014.
GDP: Approximately US$ 580 against a global dept
of US$ 2 100 per capita. Employment: 105 000 productive jobs and 22 000 officials in 1974, but
78 000 productive jobs and 80 000
officials in 1994.
In 1974 there were 111 productive job contracts
for every 1 000 inhabitants but only 31 jobs in 1994.
Other problems related to the socio-economic situation
of the country, and also of Dolisie, are: poverty; malnutrition;
hygiene; drinking water; health service; pharmaceutics; basic
education and vocational schools; degradation of all kinds of
infrastructures like water, electricity, telephone, roads (only
560 km of the existing 12 000 km are tarred); railway; and
the Congo river waterways including harbours.
Eighty percent of the food is imported at a
cost of US$ 130 million per year, whereas during the 1960s Congo
was a food exporter.
Presentation of SOCOBOIS
The Société Congolaise des Bois SARL,
Dolisie, Republic of the Congo, was created in 1964. Wood Processing Factory
SOCOBOIS does not export logs, it processes all
the logs produced by the company in its forest concessions and
purchased from others in the region.
SOCOBOIS Investments 1964 Creation of the Company, Shareholder: Gerhard Wonnemann, a German company in Westphalia 1965 Installation of the first peeling line 1968 Installation of the second peeling line 1972 Logging 1977 Installation of a sawmill 1981 Installation of the first slicing line 1984 Large expansion of the veneer jointing section 1986 Panel wood drying shed 1989 Installation of the second slicing line 1991 Installation of the plywood production line 1994 Large-scale modernization of the peeling lines
1995 Replacement of forest material
All investments were realised step-by-step when
the previous problems had been solved, such as staff training,
product quality and quantity improvement, productivity and cost
coverage. Not to mention the many problems related to local administration
and transportation on road and railway which have delayed and
hampered enormously our ambitious investment programme.
Activities
One socio-economic activity with high relevance
to environment protection is the production of charcoal from wood
processing residues and firewood from bark. The wood residues
are given free of charge to the workers and the population of
the town. The annual amount of firewood and charcoal used in households
is estimated at 4 000 m3, what is the equivalent
of 50 000 savannah trees which would normally be cut every
year by the population for their energy needs.
SOCOBOIS brings know-how,
technology and money to the country and the region.
Staff, Training, Qualified Workers/Technicians
It took a long time for SOCOBOIS to have well trained
technical staff and qualified workers as there are no vocational
training schools for the woodworking sector. As a result, SOCOBOIS
has to employ a large number of expatriates working as foremen
and section chiefs in the production and as trainers at the factory,
in the workshops and at the forest sites.
The ratio between expatriates and nationals has
fallen from 1 : 23 in 1965 to 1 : 60 in 1996.
SOCOBOIS-related services are charcoal burners,
guards, artisans, school teachers, health services, etc.
In Africa, the family still plays a very important
role in social life. Anyone with a regular salary, for reasons
of tradition and customary solidarity, is obliged to share it
with family members.
And in Africa, the family is very "elastic"
and numerous especially when poverty calls for support from more
wealthy family members.
I am not a sociologist, but I have always carried
out and commissioned surveys amongst the workers on their problems
and their daily priorities. Given the financial and salary situation
in the country in general, it is not surprising to see that each
of our employees is, on average, supporting 21 people, taking
care of medical costs, children's school expenses, etc.
The increasingly high dependency rate of people
from one earner in the family is typical of poverty in Africa
and of course in the Dolisie region.
In conclusion: at least a third of the population
of Dolisie depends on SOCOBOIS' industrial activity.
Income-Generation in Dolisie
The following table shows the high share of income
generated by SOCOBOIS workers which is more than 64 percent
compared to the total income of all those employed in the town
of Dolisie.
Contribution to Public Finances in US$
Assessment of the Impact of Wood Processing
A brief summary of the important socio-economic
role of forest industry in Dolisie, the region and the country
as a whole, allows us to appreciate the general impact of log
processing in the country.
But, more than 50 percent of the 600 000
m3 of logs produced annually are still exported in
the rough form. Their processing in the country would provide
more employment and general income as demonstrated by the following
example.
Employment
To each forest worker, 1.5 to 3.5 factory workers
must be added, depending on the type of processing. In the case
of SOCOBOIS, the factor is 3.6 in the factory (180 on the forest
site, 650 in the factory). Logging in the Congo:
600 000 m3 / year divided by 150
m3 / year / man = 4 000 jobs 100 percent processing in the Congo:
4 000 x 2.5 men per logging worker = 10 000
jobs
If all processing were to be done in the country,
instead of the present 8 000 jobs, the Congo would immediately
have 14 000 jobs without counting any jobs which are secondary
to industrial activity, this means 6 000 more jobs.
Added-Value Contribution to the Country
Financial Results by m3 of Logs
These results depend on the level of processing,
yield, wood quality and also staff quality, species and market.
The value-added by processing, per m3
logs equivalent, is higher than that earned by simply exporting
the logs.
In the case of SOCOBOIS, we can demonstrate that
1 m3 of processed logs earns, on average, US$ 100
per m3 more.
Direct and Indirect Taxes, Dues, Customs Duties,
etc.
The tax department profits directly and indirectly
from industrial activity. In the case of SOCOBOIS, only as regards
industry, it takes over 20 percent of the turnover.
What would Dolisie's Socio-Economic Situation
be like without SOCOBOIS?
If, for reasons beyond SOCOBOIS' control, the factory
had to close, what would happen in Dolisie?
The list below answers this question:
In short, the closure of the company would be a
disaster for the region and for the whole national economy.
On the other hand, the example of SOCOBOIS should
encourage other companies to abandon log export in favour of local
processing.
It seems to me that these
facts are convincing evidence of the positive and important socio-economic
role of a forest industry.
Forest Activities
Our principle is rational management and sustainable
use of the forest, respecting the laws in force and the regulations
for Forest Code implementation. The case study carried out by
FAO two years ago on environmentally friendly logging practices
provided us with some useful recommendations on how to improve
our forest operations.
SOCOBOIS has signed a contract with the Government
to establish a Pilot Development, Reforestation and Agroforestry
Programme. But sustainability in forestry can only be achieved
if we have the full long-term rights on the forest area. This
is why we have requested a lease on the land for 99 years or the
length of the company's life. Without land rights there can never
be sustainable development.
Certification and Sustainable Development
In principle, we are interested in a strict certification
system as long as this does not imply costly formalities and bureaucracy
and it improves our sales (prices) on the world market.
How can we certify the products when the logs which
are purchased from other companies are not coming from certified
forests?
Is certification a mode?
Is certification a must, and with what result?
Is certification a means of creating jobs for the
"experts"?
Certification is chancy in that it will force forestry
enterprises and forest administrations to accept the rules of
sustainable development.
But let us not forget that it took Europe and the
other continents a very long time to reach today's standard, a
standard which is still being questioned by some experts.
On the basis of my experience in Africa, everything
takes twice as long and, in practice, it will be a long, hard
job to train and convince people in the field.
Therefore, the principles, criteria and indicators
to be established and applied must take into account the people
who work in the field. It is them who must be convinced to work
better today so as to pave the way for the future of their grandchildren.
Recommendations
A world inventory of tropical forest resources with
the assistance of the World Bank, using modern systems.
Coordination and monitoring of all activities at
world level to achieve sustainable forest management.
Coordination of criteria,
practicable in Africa, for the certification of forest products
at world level.
Incentivation of industrialization and privatization
which, in the long term, mean:
On the occasion of the CONFERENCE ON THE ECOSYSTEMS
OF CENTRAL AFRICAN DENSE RAIN FORESTS, I proposed that, while
taking into account the regional differences, not only minimum
diameters but also maximum diameters should be respected. We must
protect trees of large diameter and list them as "NATIONAL
MONUMENTS".
Summary
Forest industry creates jobs through processing
and this confirms its socio-economic role. Industrialization,
above all in the rural areas of developing countries, is an indispensable
support to the infrastructure and counters poverty and malnutrition.
Industrialists are making long-term plans and investments
for 20 to 50 years. In many cases, an industrialist may be a better
partner for a developing country than a good number of bilateral
cooperation projects, which are very often short-term projects.
We are an industrial company and we must realise
that we cannot perform miracles, nor reduce poverty in general.
Our work must be coordinated with the efforts of
governments, international institutions such as the World Bank,
international cooperation, GTZ, potential investors, university
researchers, etc.
It would be desirable that there were many more
contacts in the future between the above-mentioned institutions,
because it is only through joint efforts that the developing countries
can hope to see a substantial improvement in their socio-economic,
employment and infrastructure situation. |