The forestry sector employs about 22,000 people and contributes less than 4% to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), but faces significant challenges regarding job precariousness, especially in rural areas, warned the Government.
Francisco Salmo, National Director of Environment and Climate Change, said this Tuesday (22), during the launch in Maputo of the project to revitalize forestry associations, that although the sector used to record higher numbers in the past, currently a large part of the employment is characterized by informality, lack of contracts, and job insecurity.
“The job precariousness that characterizes most of these positions urgently requires strengthening contractual formalization, guarantees of job security, and dignification of working conditions, normally in rural areas with difficult access,” said the official, who represented the Ministry of Agriculture, Environment and Fisheries.
The Government advocates a strong focus on local processing of natural resources as a way to create jobs and boost community economies. According to Francisco Salmo, raw export of natural resources limits job creation, local development, and reduces the added value of products.
The project to revitalize forestry associations, financed by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and promoted by the Mozambican Federation of Wood Operators (Fedemoma), aims to empower associations in the districts of Manica, Sofala, and Niassa, ensuring sustainable exploitation that respects labor and environmental standards.
“We want to transform the forestry sector into an example of good management, local development, and environmental preservation,” emphasized Jorge Chacate, president of Fedemoma.
He also highlighted the importance of the recent revision of the forestry law, which allows the valorization of non-timber forest products, incorporates climate change into forestry policy, and sets the goal of increasing the forestry sector’s contribution to GDP from the current 2% to 4%.
Source: Lusa