Exploit lesser-known wood species : Veep advises furniture producers
The Vice-President, Mr Kwesi Amissah-Arthur, has called on producers of furniture to diversify their operations to exploit lesser-known species of timber.
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He said the decline in forest resources, including major sources of timber, had affected the growth of local wood industries, for which reason players in the industry ought to exploit other sources, especially the bamboo plant.
“Bamboo is one of the forest resources which has great economic value, but which has not been properly harnessed. Local entrepreneurs in the wood and furniture industry ought to take advantage of the livelihood support programmes initiated by the government to grow their businesses in this area,” he said.
He made the call in a speech read on his behalf at a stakeholder conference organised for players of the wood and furniture industry in Accra on Tuesday.
The conference, which was held on the theme: “Developing the Local Wood and Furniture Industry: the Prospects and Challenges,” was under the auspices of HousinData Ghana Limited, a private market research and business development company.
Participants were drawn from stakeholders in the wood and furniture industry and the business community including the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI), Sirius Properties, West Blue Consulting, Kpogas Furniture and Melgrep Company Limited.
Mr Amissah-Arthur said power supply was critical to the survival of local industries, for which reason the government was putting all measures in place to solve the current energy challenges.
Inter-sectorial approach
For his part, the Minister of Trade and Industry, Mr Ekwow Spio-Garbrah, called for inter-sectorial approach to address the challenges facing the wood and furniture industry.
He said stakeholder ministries ought to formulate policies that would protect forest resources, promote the growth of local industries and open market opportunities for local industries.
Collaborations
Mr Spio-Garbrah also asked players in the wood and furniture industry to form cooperatives and partnerships to enable them to pool resources and expertise to enhance production.
He observed that some institutions and clients imported furniture because they lacked confidence in the quality of products from local industries.
In view of that, he asked operators in the local wood industry to incorporate modern information and communications technology (ICTs) to remain relevant in the dynamic and competitive global market.
The minister observed that it was time financial institutions in the country got involved and supported local wood and furniture industries to boost production.
Boost local wood sector
The Board Chairman of HousinData Ghana Limited, Dr Richard Adjei, observed that the fast rate of growth of the country’s population, coupled with the boom in the real-estate sector, called for a robust wood and furniture sector to equate demand and supply of furniture.
He blamed the slow spate of growth of the sector on the dwindling fortunes of the timber industry, which he said was caused by indiscriminate felling of trees.
Dr Adjei indicated that HousinData Company would prioritise research into the prospects of the wood and furniture industry and make the findings available to players in the industry and policy makers
