GTMO and contractors sign business deal

The Ghana Timber Millers' Organisation (GTMO) and the Association of Building and Civil Engineering Contractors of Ghana have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the supply of domestic lumber for local projects at a short ceremony in Kumasi.

The signing ceremony was one of the upshots of several months of deliberations by the GTMO Council towards developing strategies in meeting the growing trends in wood product consumption in Ghana and especially to make legal timber available to the construction industry that would require well treated and quality timber.

In an address, the Chief Executive officer of GTMO Mr. E.E.K Acquah-Moses disclosed that the timber industry accounts for over 75% of the total annual income of the Ghana Forestry Commission. He said the export trade in wood products is a major contributor to the national income bringing in annual foreign currency of nearly 200million Euros and amounting to 30% of national earnings over the past five years.

GTMO is well informed about results of several surveys of local lumber market that indicates that the current demand for lumber for domestic consumption is far in excess of 500,000 cubic metres per annum. This implies that the 20% lumber that GTMO is obliged to put on the market is inadequate. However the total annual legal supply of logs inputs to be processed into lumber and plywood is between 1.5 and 2million cubic metres.

As a compromise on the issue, GTMO will supply boards and scantling of the three species directly to the strategic consumers who are prepared to make bulk purchases. Concessionary prices will also be charged to make the product affordable to local consumers.

Apart from the fact that quality construction is paramount, the main drive of the arrangement is to reduce the production of illegal chainsaw lumber and its associated trade and use in Ghana. With this, GTMO hoped would reduce the illegal logging and wonton destruction of immature trees and consequent degradation of the forest and depletion of timber resources.

In responds to the business deal, the President of the Association of Building & Civil Engineering Construction of Ghana, ABCECG, Mr Kwame Afreh, did indicate that there had been instances where the use of bad timber had resulted in accidents on construction sites; especially when used as scaffolding. ‘Every good contractor will therefore not risk using timber which cannot stand the test of time, no matter how costly it will be’ he added.

Mr Afreh said in the past, the Government in realising the negative effects of illegal chainsaw operations directed milling companies to increase supply to the domestic market by 20% of their lumber production as per Section 36 of L.I.1649.

Some selected companies were directed to supply solely to the local market. However, these directives and arrangements did not yield the expected results. The saw millers argued that they could not sell their products on the local market at prices commensurate with the production cost. For this reason, they are compelled to export their products to enable them recoup their investments.

Mr Afreh was hopeful that the arrangement would be sustained to reduce the indiscriminate felling of trees including primary species and its allied environmental degradation which eventually would lead to the destruction of habitat for wildlife and sources of water. He said when that was achieved; they could be assured of continuous future supply of raw materials to the timber and construction industries.