The Philippine wood industry believes that wide-scale implementation of sustainable forest management can bring not just environmental benefits but also livelihood opportunities to farmers in upland areas.
The Philippine Wood Producers Association (PWPA) estimates that sustainable forest management can create hundreds of thousands of jobs. For primary manufacturing alone, around 236,500 full-time jobs per year can be generated. From the development and primary wood processing, there are potentially more than 500,000 jobs that can be filled by our countrymen. Aside from these, the PWPA also sees more vacancies created in allied industries as an effect of the resurgence of the forestry sector. If the Sustainable Forest Management Bill becomes a law, additional income for the government is promised through new taxes.
“In the Philippines, we believe that sustainable forest management is the only way forward.” says Charlie H. Liu, President of the PWPA. “By ensuring that we are balancing the needs of our people and the viability of our forests, we can reach a more prosperous and sustainable future for the entire country.”
If we look at the data, the country has 15.81 million hectares of forestland and 63.6 percent of these are categorized as established timberland. When even just a portion is harnessed sustainably, it can already be an important driver for growth and development for many communities, and by extension, for the entire economy as well.
The organization illustrated how jobs can be created through sustainable forest management. PWPA said that an estimated 5.02 man-days are needed for every cubic meter of falcata logs produced and harvested. Moreover, an additional 2.37 man-days are needed per cubic meter for wood processing. This means that a 100,000-hectare plantation producing 20,000,000 cubic meters of falcata logs in a year will require 100.4 million man-days from plantation development to harvesting and hauling, which translates to about 321,800 full-time jobs created for a year.
Currently, provinces in Visayas and Mindanao are already producing livelihoods through log, lumber, veneer, and plywood production. The provinces of Agusan del Sur, Surigao del Sur, Biliran, Bukidnon, Zamboanga del Norte, Misamis Occidental, Cotabato, among others can be taken as early success stories in sustainable forest management.
The development of communities in the aforementioned areas is a good indicator of the overall resilience of the local forestry industry.
Today, with a better understanding of how to protect our forests while taking care of the needs of communities dependent on wood production, we can see a more inclusive growth brought by the industry. This is primarily done through the practice of sustainable forest management.
Sustainable forest management plays an important role in building communities that depend on wood production as their primary source of income. The United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) says that it addresses the significance of forest degradation and deforestation while increasing direct benefits to people and the environment.
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About PWPA
The Philippine Wood Producers Association (PWPA) is the national association of companies, corporations, partnerships, and individuals involved in forest management. It aims to promote the sustainable management of natural and plantation forests that will increase their capacity to supply the wood requirement and enhance their capacity to provide ecological balance for the country. It strives to serve and protect the market of the wood industry against unfair trade practices. By executing events such as the annual Philippine Wood Expo, participating in timber conferences, workshops, and environmental advocacies, it attains the public’s appreciation for its role in the social, economic, and environmental development of the country.
