BY SAMIE WAIKORI

Leader of the official Opposition group in Parliament, Matthew Wale has questioned GNUT of its promise to reform the forestry sector of the country.

The forestry sector, under the Ministry of Forest and Resources (MFR) has long been faced with controversy for industry such as logging and other programs or activities that need to be properly regulated.

Speaking in parliament this week, Wale said “in the forestry sector, the government’s 100-day policy promises remain largely unmet.

He said the review and reform of the Forest Resources and Timber Utilization Act is still incomplete, with no clarity on whether it will be a full repeal or amendment.

Wale added the enforcement of the 8% milled timber quota remains weak, undermining efforts to create local jobs and value-adding.

“Monitoring and compliance across log ponds, a key 100-Day action, is crippled by underfunding and manpower shortages, allowing revenue leakages to persist.

“Plans to promote downstream processing and launch sustainable carbon trading initiatives have stalled,” he noted.

Wale said in a sector that should be a pillar of wealth, government negligence and mismanagement of our forest resources has left only stumps where forests and opportunity should stand.

“There is nothing that gives hope in an industry that should be a natural strength in our economy.

“Government’s approach in forestry seems to me to be one of merely managing the diminishing industry.

“There are opportunities in forestry, but government seems uninterested in them,” he expressed.

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