To combat illegal logging, Gambia has banned timber exports. All export licenses have been revoked.
The ban was immediately in effect and port authorities were instructed to refuse to load timber logs onto any vessel.
A BBC investigation revealed in 2020 that huge quantities of West African Rosewood had been trafficked from Senegal to the country.
It is used to make furniture in China, where a lot of it ends up in China.
It has been declared an endangered species since 2017 and Cites, The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (Cites), called on seven countries including The Gambia to suspend its trade.
Despite having declared its stocks near extinction a decade ago. The Gambia is a consistent five-star global exporter of West African Rosewood (Pterocarpus.erinaceus).
Rosewood is a highly-trafficked wildlife product, both in terms of volume and value.
It is also known as Hongmu, or “redwood”, and is used primarily for antique-style furniture.
BBC Africa Eye figures showed that China imported more Than 300,000 tonnes of The Gambia’s goods between 2017 and 2020.
That is the equivalent of about half a million trees and worth more than $100m (£80m).
Multiple sources confirmed to BBC, over a year-long investigation in Senegal and The Gambia that the rosewood being shipped from The Gambia to China was made in the Casamance region of southern Senegal.
The BBC discovered at least 12 depots containing rosewood or other timber along a 170km (105 mile) stretch of border between the countries. They were all found within Gambian territory.
Source: rnewtimes
