Tanzania has a burgeoning woodworking sector
Posted on : Tuesday, 5th December 2023
Tanzania is a budding market for the woodworking industry, there are several companies that operate sawmills in Tanzania, such as Wood Export Co., Energo Tanzania, Green Resources, Pethad Trading Company Limited, Wood Industry Solutions, Hope General Supplies, Gats Solutions Co Limited, Ifundaindustrial, Bora Msaky Sawmill, Rasik Lagoon, and Firgos International BV, operate sawmills in Tanzania, which is a developing market for the woodworking industry. These businesses manufacture a wide range of timber products, including plywood, veneer, sawn wood, furniture and building supplies. Many timber species,pine, eucalyptus, teak, mahogany, and acacia, are used in Tanzanian sawmills. Tanzania's sawmills help the management and conservation of the nation's forests, improve commerce and export of wood products, and create employment and income opportunities for the populace. These factors all contribute to the economic and social growth of Tanzania.
There are many different players in Tanzania's timber business, including traders, consumers, sawmillers, forest owners, and loggers. The sawmillers are the ones who turn the logs into sawn wood, which is subsequently offered for sale on the local or international markets. Three groups of sawmillers can be distinguished: artisanal, semi-industrial, and industrial.
Tanzania's woodworking industry is a branch of the timber industry that specialises in creating wood goods such flooring, joinery, doors, windows, furniture, and panels. The demand for woodworking products comes mostly from the home, construction, and tourism industries. In addition to providing jobs, the woodworking industry supports a large number of urban and peri-urban populations.
Over 90% of Tanzania's wood product producers are small and medium-sized firms (SMEs), which dominate the country's woodworking industry. The SMEs use low-quality and low-value wood products, such as off-cuts, waste wood, and recycled wood, and primarily operate in the unorganised sector. The majority of the wood products produced by SMEs are low-end, low-quality items such tables, beds, cabinets, and shelves.
Tanzania's woodworking industry is changing, and this change includes the following elements:
-Enhancing the availability and calibre of raw resources
-Investing in new and suitable machinery, such as CNC machines, edge banders, sanders, and routers, to improve technology and equipment.
-Increasing the capacity and skill set by forming cooperatives and alliances for SMEs and offering woodworkers education, training, and certification.
-Raising the bar for standards and quality by creating and enforcing certifications, labels, and standards for wood products in addition to enhancing their creativity and design.
-Enhancing funding and market accessibility by making it easier for SMEs to obtain loans, grants, and subsidies and by offering market data, promotion, and connections for wood products.
-Reducing taxes, tariffs, and fees; streamlining rules and processes; and offering incentives and subsidies are some of the ways that this will improve governmental and institutional support for the woodworking industry.
Tanzania's woodworking industry is significant. For a large number of urban and periurban communities, it provides a source of income and jobs. By generating wood goods for the home, building, and tourism industries, it also advances the national economy and development. More significantly, Tanzania produces an estimated 1.2 million m3 of sawn timber annually, of which 70% is used domestically and 30% is exported.
