Ecobreves – NICARAGUA: Fomenting Forest Production

By IPS Correspondents and - - Reprint | | Print |

MANAGUA, Aug 11 2002 (IPS) - The government of Nicaragua is attempting to mitigate a drop-off in exports and reduce its 600-million-dollar fiscal deficit through the promotion of six industries, including sustainable forestry. The idea is to make sustainable use of lumber resources, creating finished wood products, and “quit selling mere boards”, Franklin Bordas Lowery, an official from the Nicaraguan Agricultural and Forestry Ministry's forestry project, told Tierramérica.

According to official figures, the country has 2.6 million hectares of forest plantations, which constitute more than 80 million cubic meters of wood.

The forestry industry provides 3.5 million dollars annually to Nicaragua's gross domestic product, says the Central Bank.