-Minister Bharrat says confidence restored as GFC surpasses production target

WITH confidence restored in Guyana’s forestry sector, Minister of Natural Resources Vickram Bharrat has said that over 25,000 Guyanese are currently employed directly and indirectly in the sector.

Minister Bharrat made this disclosure during the Ministry of Natural Resources’ recently held press conference.

Giving his commendation to the Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC), the minister said: “Over the last four years, regardless of battling ‘COVID’ and the harsh weather conditions, they would have managed to turn around the sector, so much so that today we have many new investors or new players entering the forestry sector.”

Among the successes of the forestry sector, he indicated, was that the government has also seen over 25,000 Guyanese being employed directly or indirectly in the forestry sector.

He added that in relation to production in the forestry sector, a significant increase has been seen, overall, from 2020 to 2024.

However, Minister Bharrat indicated that in 2024, an increase of over 20,000 cubic metres was seen as compared to the 2023 production.

This, he said, shows that confidence has been renewed in Guyanese investors and stakeholders to invest in the forestry sector.

To this end, the minister noted that the GFC will continue its push towards downstream processing and value-added products.

He added that this has always been a target that the Commission is working towards, and as such there is an intention to intensify the push towards value-added products in the year 2025 and beyond.
In this regard, he disclosed that they have seen 12 new lumber yards and 25 sawmills, which he noted means that more and more people are entering the value-added sector.

Added to that, Minister Bharrat said that several persons have invested in furniture factories. He pointed to the Duravilla Housing programme, which has been expanded and will also see an increase in production in 2025.

He stated that they have also observed that stakeholders are investing, retooling and recapitalising to ensure that the recovery rate is increased significantly.

“When we took over, the recovery rate was way below 40 per cent. Today, some stakeholders can achieve as high as 70, 75 per cent recovery rate from a log. That is quite a significant improvement over the past three years,” he said.

Continuing to focus on investments made by stakeholders in the sector, Minister Bharrat indicated that they have also seen such investments being made in kiln drying.

“So, today we can boast that we have a number of companies engaging in the drying of wood. This leads to better quality of wood products; it leads to better export products as well, too,” he said.

Meanwhile, Minister Bharrat stated that for 2025, the GFC has been tasked with looking at the forest economy, and creating alternative economic opportunities in forest communities other than just harvesting trees.

This, he said will tie into the Low-Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS), as this strategy speaks to keeping the forest intact and maintaining a low deforestation rate.

Moving towards value-added in this regard and finding alternative opportunities in these communities will significantly contribute to reducing deforestation even further, while keeping the sector viable.

“It is important and imperative that as a government and as a country, we keep the sector viable,” he expressed.
Meanwhile, Commissioner of the GFC Edward Goberdhan also noted that 2024 was another good year in terms of production in the forestry sector, as both the targets set for 2023 and for 2024 were surpassed.

Goberdhan stated that this is a testament to the good governance in the sector, both at the policy level and the concession management level.