KUCHING: The timber sector in Sarawak registered export earnings of RM3.58 billion for January until August this year, said Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan.
Awang Tengah, who is also Industrial and Entrepreneur Development Minister cum Second Minister for Urban Development and Natural Resources, said the amount was a decrease of 14 per cent compared to RM4.17 billion in the same period of 2017.
“The five major markets for Sarawak timber products are Japan, India, South Korea, the Middle East and Taiwan,” he said when winding up his ministry’s debate on the Supply 2019 Bill at the Sarawak Legislative Assembly sitting here yesterday.
He said the decline was mainly due to the reduction in the supply of raw materials and the inability of current mills to process the raw materials as well as slower demand from the major markets.
To ensure the supply of raw materials, he said the state government would ensure the annual production of logs from industrialised forests is increased to at least two million cubic metres to meet the shortfall of logs from natural forests.
Awang Tengah said the state government has also undertaken various initiatives to ensure the sustainable development of the furniture industry, especially the growth of value-added products including furniture manufacturing.
Local manufacturers need to retool in line with changes in the types of raw materials available as part of efforts to sustain the timber industry, he added. -Bernama
