Timber is one of the main materials used for furniture decorations and house roofing in Sierra Leone, but due to the coronavirus pandemic, timber is currently scarce in the market. It is not the first time the sector is experiencing such a shortage, as a few years back it occurred after the government imposed a ban on the trade due to massive deforestation.
Abu Bakarr Mansaray, a timber seller at Pademba Road, said of late business has been very difficult for them, as most of the high quality timber logs are coming from neighbouring Liberia. He added that the border between Liberia and Sierra Leone is currently closed.
Mansaray averred that as a result of the scarcity, there is a high level of inflation of local timber prices for the small number of timber currently available in the country. Outlining another reason for the scarcity, Mansaray said most of their workers have migrated from local timber to logging for export with the Chinese.
He noted that such migrations have drastically deprived them of the necessary manpower to support the Sierra Leone market at the moment.
“The reason for such is because of the money,” he added. He said the white timber they used to sell for Le70,000 now sells for Le75,000, and the red timber they used to sell for Le85,000 is now being sold for Le95,000. He pointed out that having such grades of timber is a huge challenge, disclosing that walnut timber, which is one of the best timber grades, is currently not available in the country.
Mansaray furthered that there is ban imposed by paramount chiefs prohibiting timber vehicles from entering their villages, citing that the vehicles have been damaging their roads and plantations over the years. Another timber seller, Abdul Jalloh at Dauda Street, called on the government to put measures in place for them to have local timber for the general public. He emphasised that most of the timber work is now being carried out by Chinese nationals, and those timbers are mainly for export.
“We should be protected as Sierra Leoneans, as it is the timber that we are coming with from the provinces that are being used by the people of Sierra Leone for their furniture and roofs.”
A machinist at the PWD Carpentry Workshop, Michael Kamara, alias Van Persie, said the scarcity of timber in the country has gradually affected their work, and maintained that people are now afraid of making furniture due to the amount of money involved in the process.
He said initially they used to ask for a million or two for beds, but are currently demanding Le5 million, which he said has driven away a large number of their customers.
Kamara said they survive based on the availability of timber, adding that the scarcity makes it difficult for them and their families to survive.
Consequently, he called on the authorities concerned to do due diligence in addressing this worrying issue. A few weeks ago, the CEO of Leadway Company, Babadi Kamara disclosed to journalists that they generated over $50 million in timber sales for the Government of Sierra Leone. Meanwhile, due to the many challenges, a host of local timber businessmen have ceased to operate.
By Mohamed J. Bah