Wamara logs exported from Guyana earlier this year were priced between US$200 and US$220 per cubic metre but were priced between US$757 and US$773 in China, a difference of over US$500 and forestry expert Janette Bulkan says forensic audits in the natural resources sector are urgently needed.
According to the Forest Products Development & Marketing Council of Guyana Inc (FPDMC) Market/Export Report for April 2015, the price range for exported wamara logs was reported as being between US$200 and US$220 per cubic metre during January to March 2015. In the latest edition of the Tropical Timber Market Report of the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO), wholesale prices per cubic metre of Wamara at the Guangzhou Yuzhu International Timber Market in China was reported as being between US$757 and US$773. Bulkan highlighted the figures in a letter to the Stabroek News yesterday.
The forestry expert said the difference of US$500 per cubic metre provides an indication of the scale of Customs fraud, which was estimated for Guyana at US$84 million in 2003 rising almost continuously to US$440 million in 2012. Citing the
