The future of wood based industries will depend on the status of the forest cover, demand for wood products and population growth.
However human population growth is a crucial factor in the consideration of future industrial raw materials demand of which, in Rwanda is the driving factor to future success in both forestry and industry sector.
Members of DUHAGURURE KORA Cooperative based in Musanze District deals with furniture production and sawn wood merchandising.
Cooperative members revealed that Low quality sawn wood from pit sawyers (types of woods) leads to low quality wood products unable to compete with imports from outside the country.
According to members of the cooperative, lack of modern equipment to produce products fitting international standards and to gather consumer confidence in local products is still a major challenge to them.
As a way to improve the sector, local authorities revealed that there are ongoing support actions to improve the sector including trainings seminars to pitsawyers (small scale sawmillers) in order to improve sawnwood quality and handling techniques to minimize wood waste and to maximize the returns from the felled trees.
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