The Coalition Against Illegal Logging has revealed that the country is losing ¢10 million monthly from the use of Rosewood for charcoal.
According to the Coalition, the use of Rosewood for charcoal has dire consequences on the global wood economy since the commodity has high economic viability.
Rosewood has over the years been turned into charcoal whilst some have been carried away by floods.
According to the Coalition, about 90% of charcoal are from burnt rosewood and sold at cheap prices on the market.
This, the Coalition said, when halted and instead auctioned, will generate more revenue for the country.
This disclosure by the Coalition contradicts claims by some pundits at a recent Joy Forum on ending illegal Rosewood trade that the commodity is sold at $53,000 per 20 feet container on the world market.
“On the program on that day on Joy News, one gentleman said that Rosewood is sold at $53,000 in China. It is not true. You can check on the world market because Rosewood on the international market is $600 and a container is 18 cubic, so if you multiply 18 cubics by $600, you will arrive at $10,800 for a container,” he said.
The National Chairman of the Coalition is, therefore, urging government to invest revenue from auctioned Rosewoods into planting new ones.
Mr Asamoah Aduboffor said Ghana will lose huge revenue if it fails to invest in its plantation.
“What we are saying is that if the Forestry Commission comes across these illegal logs, instead of leaving it for the farmer to turn it into charcoal, they should rather auction or sell it. Then they can invest the money into planting new ones so that in the coming years, Rosewood can become a resource like cocoa,” he said.
In January this year, the Lands Ministry being aware of the ongoing illegality regarding the trading of rosewood reiterated that the ban placed on the harvesting, transporting and exporting of Rosewood is still in force.
He was emphatic that any person or group of persons who flout the ban would be arrested and prosecuted according to the laws of the country.
The Ministry has intensified its monitoring and patrol activities in hot-spot areas and would impound any truck conveying Rosewood and other wood products illegally harvested.
