FSC and UFCL Business Forum held in Kigali, August 30, 2024 included academia and bankers
The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) has committed to supporting Rwanda in creating community awareness and education for the community to take up international standards in promoting sustainable forest and wood management and the use of certified wood products.
The commitment was made by the FSC Coordinator Eastern Africa region, Annah Agasha, who was representing the FSC Africa Director, Dr. Peter Alele at a Business Forum held in Kigali this August 30, 2024.
The forum that under the theme: “FSC certification: Setting a new trend for Rwanda’s Forestry and Market for wood and wood-based products”
As a country known for creative home-grown solutions, innovation and over-achieving globally set development goals such as green growth, massive tree planting, Agasha said that FSC is confident Rwanda will come through.
Rwanda has so far surpassed the global tree planting targets (30%) reaching 30.4% of forest cover, as of 2020 and in 2023 set targets to increase and maintain forest cover with about 63 million seedlings, according to the Rwanda Forestry Authority.
However, ensuring international wood management standards through the whole tree value chain- from planting to the end product is limited in Rwanda.
For instance, Ultimate Forests Company Limited (UFCL) is the only one company in Rwanda that is certified and applying FSC certification standards.
UFCL, funded by the Development Bank of Rwanda, is a sustainable, socially responsible forestry and timber project business that manages local and international markets within forest, wood and wood-based products.
Annah Agasha speaking to local media in Rwanda
“We are here to commit to supporting Rwanda to create awareness on this topic of certification so as to have more forest certifications in Rwanda. The UFCL has completed the supply chain and we encourage more to do so,” Agasha said.
Agasha stated that in the region where they have operations, Kenya has the largest number of 12 FSC certified operations and this is placing them as the hub for certified goods in the East African Community region.
To enable Rwanda to have more FSC certified operations, Agasha called on the local financial institutions and forestry financers to invest in certification of business dealing in wood and wood products as they are profitable to all sides.
The FSC certification document, which is not mandatory but recommended to governments and private sector, certifies forests to ensure their environments are responsibly managed and meet the highest environmental and social standards.
According to the FSC, certified forests must be managed to the highest environmental, social and economic standards so as to be able to produce high quality value but sustainable end-products which are environmental friendly and beneficial to the community.
This means that FSC certification is a standard for forest certification which ensures that wood products meet internationally recognized standards from the planting stage, the manufacturing and distribution (a value chain called “Chain of Custody”).
The regional FSC team at the business forum
Though Rwanda has partial wood and wood products regulations (set by the Rwanda Standards Board-RSB) the country also has an approved FSC framework- the FSC Interim Forest Stewardship Standard ((IFSS) since 2017, the ministry of environment, says what is lacking is the efforts to mobilize the implementation and acquiring international certifications- like the FSC.
Though Rwanda is wood scarce with a 2:1 ratio of demand and supply projected to reach 7.5million tonnes by 2026, the forestry sector is a cornerstone of Rwanda’s sustainable development, generating about $76 million annually and providing over 75,000 direct and indirect jobs.
Dr. Concorde Nsengumuremyi
“To sustain these benefits and secure the future of our forests, embracing and promoting sustainable practices is crucial. Today’s forum serves as a platform to address these issues and explore opportunities,” said Dr. Concorde Nsengumuremyi, the Director General of Rwanda Forestry Authority (RFA).
On behalf of the government, RFA committed to attain FSC certification through educating stakeholders on the importance of FSC certification and the benefits of certified wood products, build partnerships and networks to support the supply chain for certified wood products, and encourage local and regional interest in FSC-certified wood.
Rwanda Wood Value Chain Association (RWVCA)- Haji Abdul Karemera, said that there has been lack of awareness on FSC standards and once introduced to the process of certification, this will improve the quality of wood on the local and export market.
