South America: Guyana

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• Forestry Training Center

Enhancing the Livelihoods of Forest Operators and Communities in Guyana

In 2002, the Tropical Forest Foundation (TFF) significantly expanded its work in South America beyond Brazil with the start of an reduced impact logging training program in Guyana. Accordingly, TFF and the Guyana Forest Products Association and the Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC) created the Guyana Forest Training Center (FTC) to make the country's forest industry more competitive while minimizing the impact of timber harvesting. The original training program was initiated with support of a grant from the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO).

The FTC project now contributes to the improvement of sustainable forest management in Guyana through the adoption of Reduced Impact Logging (RIL)  practices, resulting in a more competitive sector and enhanced livelihoods of forest operators and communities. The project's main objective is to establish local capability to deliver training of forestry practitioners (managers, supervisors and workforce) in RIL.

More than 94 percent of Guyana’s 83,000 square miles is forested, compared with about 59 percent for the rest of South America. With a population of fewer than 800,000, the country is home to vast untapped resources and represents a major opportunity for loggers and conservationists alike. The forest products industry in Guyana is still in its infancy, despite the fact that it has tripled in size this decade alone. Exports are growing at a robust rate and the government is committed to further development.

The centerpiece of Guyana's sustainability efforts is the Iwokrama Rainforest in the south-central part of the country. The government donated Iwokrama to serve as a model for sustainable forestry and conservation research. The FTC program builds on this by training managers on how to use such techniques in the rest of the country, where inventories are undocumented and industry remains largely unregulated. Coordinated by GFC and implemented by TFF, the Guyana project builds on the experience of the RIL training program in Brazil. Training is approached through separate modules for managerial/supervisory staff and for forest workers.

For information on the Guyana program, visit http://www.forestry.gov.gy/ftc.htm.

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Local Contact Information 

E-mail
ftrc@networksgy.com

Contact Person
Godfrey Marshall, Project Director

Phone
592.223.5061/2

Fax
592.223.5061