Latest update September 28th, 2026 10:20 AM
Offers made to export tree barks for medicinal purposes – GFC
There is significant interest in barks from the trees of Guyana for medicinal purposes.
According to Chairperson of the Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC), Jocelyn Dow, one is talking “big numbers” in terms of business for exporting tree barks.
The official was last week chairing a press conference on plans for the forestry sector. With her were GFC’s Commissioner, James Singh, and other senior officials.
Dow’s disclosure of the offers would come as no surprise.
Scientists have been discovering dozens of new animals and plants every so often in the Amazon, which Guyana’s forests are part of.
There were thousands of different species of plants, some of which would have medicinal values.
It is big business in African countries where exports are said to be hundreds of millions of US dollars annually.
Barks from trees like the Prunus Africana or the Muiri, as it is locally known, and the
pygeum bark, are said to be big business there.
In Guyana, there have been talks about how good the Neem tree is.
GFC is looking at different proposals and there is a multi-faceted plan for the future, Dow said.
This year, GFC is moving to make a decision on how it treats log exports, with consultations held last year.
Over the years, there have been experiments of introducing a phased tax export levy on logs.
There is a proposal to totally ban the export of some top species while introducing export taxes of up to 25 percent of the value.
In terms of the lesser known species of wood, GFC last week said that its Forest Products Development and Marketing Council (FPDMC) has been leading the way in promoting lesser known and used species of wood, with a booklet out and 5,000 more copies printed last year.
GFC has also been working closely with the Government on its housing programmes, using almost 400,000 B.M. The idea is to increase more this year, Commissioner Singh said.
According to the Chairperson, there is an education process which starts from the kindergarten level. From the encouraging of wooden toys to the construction of more wooden bridges and walkways, and even wooden ceilings, the possibilities are endless, Dow said.
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