Ministerial Statement: Sandalwood Development in Fiji
Honourable Speaker of Parliament;
The Honourable Prime Minister;
Honourable Deputy Prime Ministers;
Honourable Cabinet Ministers and Assistant Ministers;
Honourable Leader of the Opposition;
Honourable Members of Parliament;
Ladies and Gentlemen
A very good morning to you all.
Honourable Speaker Sir, I rise to deliver my statement on the progress of the development of Sandalwood in Fiji. As you may be aware, we have three (3) main species of sandalwood that we are promoting, and these include our native sandalwood, Santalum yasi, the Indian sandalwood, Santalum album and a cross breed between Santalum yasi and Santalum album known locally as the Santalum hybrid.
Honourable speaker
Sir, looking back in history, Sandalwood (Santalum
yasi) was one of the commodities that put Fijis name in the international
trade arena in the 18th and 19th century. Unfortunately,
the resource was over exploited and the local yasi almost became extinct. Like in other
Pacific island countries, there has been a failure in properly managing the
harvesting of sandalwood due to strong market demand coupled with the very low
level of replanting. This has resulted in the disappearance of much of the
initial natural stands causing concerns for the species’ future survival.
Between 2010-2022, we exported a total of 154,172.00 kilograms of sandalwood with a total value of $12.3 million FJD. The average price over the period was around $F71/kg, ranging from $F35 - $F208/kg with the lower values recorded from 2010 -2011. From 2012 -2016 the value went above $F100/kg, and reaching more than $F200/kg in 2015-2016.
Although the value declined to around
$F83/kg in 2017, the value, overall, was on an increasing trend over the 9-year
period. Sandalwood trade was on hold in 2020 due to the global corona virus
endemic, however, trade re-commenced from 2021 with prices hovering below
$F100/Kg.
The buyers of Fiji’s sandalwood included
Dubai, Hong Kong, China, Australia and Taiwan. Current evidence suggests that
market outlook and prices of sandalwood of high quality will remain very strong
for at least the next 5 years.
The Ministry of
Forestry realizing the high demand for Sandalwood especially in the Asian
market began investing significant amount of resources in research
to work out ways of improving natural stand management, and to introduce
sandalwood in agroforestry systems as well as in plantations.
Honourable Speaker Sir, the Fiji Government has
continued to support the development of sandalwood under a capital project, investing
$1Million FJD over a decade now in the revitalization of sandalwood development
nationally, with a focus on enhancing policy and regulatory requirements to
support the sustainable management of sandalwood and to
promote more re-planting towards the establishment of a long-term sustainable
high value industry for the country.
Interest
in planting and expanding the sandalwood resource has been increasing over the
last ten years or so given the crop’s high value and its good long term
prospects in terms of both price and demand in the international market.
Under the initiative, over 132 hectares (ha) of
sandalwood woodlots have been planted with over 58,000 sandalwood trees. In
addition a total area of 31.4 ha was planted with sandalwood using the
agroforestry system integrated with other timber and fruit trees. Sandalwood
can now been seen growing in almost any village/community and any inhabited
island in Fiji. In the next five (5) years we have forecasted to harvest around
106,000kg of sandalwood with an estimated export value of $10.0 million FJD.
In the last financial year 2023-2024, $0.1 million FJD was invested in the Sandalwood Development Project. The fund was mainly used for the sandalwood grower’s consultation in the three divisions (Central, Western and Northern), with the main objective of establishing a Sandalwood Growers Association that will protect the interest of the farmers. Sandalwood inventory was also carried out and also established sandalwood demonstration plots using the agroforestry approach.
The project plans to continue the consultation process with
the farmers in the three divisions in this new financial year and also formalize
the establishment of the Sandalwood Growers Association, promote sustainable
planting practices using the agroforestry approach and the Sandalwood Industry
Framework for Fiji.
The project also plans to continue the inventory of
sandalwood woodlots in Fiji. The project will also carry out a farmer survey in
this new financial year documenting the views and observations made by
Sandalwood farmers on the effects of climate change in the last ten years on
Viti Levu and Vanua Levu Islands.
Honourable Speaker Sir, at this juncture, I would also like to mention
here that the Ministry of Forestry,
in 2021 submitted a project
proposal titled ‘Promoting the
sustainable production of Sandalwood in Fiji’ to the Asia Pacific Network for Sustainable Forest Management and
Rehabilitation (APFNET). APFNet is an organization constituted by
it’s members which comprises 27
economies and five international organizations in the Asia-Pacific region. Fiji is also a member country.
This project was
approved for funding by the APFNet Council in 2022 and will be implemented over
a period of three years beginning this year, 2024, with a total grant of around
$0.9 million USD. The inception meeting is planned to take place in the
first quarter of this new financial year.
The
aim of this project is to promote and expand sandalwood resource that will
improve the long-term rural socioeconomic development in Fiji through the promotion
of efficient plantations and sustainable management of sandalwood.
There are two main objectives 1) to promote a substantial expansion and quality improvement of sandalwood resources through development and demonstration of efficient plantation and sustainable management of sandalwood; 2) Silviculture technologies and experiences on sandalwood are to be enhanced and knowledge extended in the Pacific region through information sharing and capacity building programs.
At the end
of the three years the APFNet Sandalwood Project aims to achieve the following:
1)
Construction of a 3,500 square meter nursery with a capacity of 20,000 high quality sandalwood seedlings;
2) 60 ha efficient sandalwood plantation and
sustainable management demonstration
established;
3) 5 ha demonstration on sandalwood plantation
using different hosts since it’s a
semi-parasitic plant;
4) Training courses conducted for project
stakeholders.
5?Best practice guidelines on the planting and management of sandalwood
for landowners.
Honourable Speaker Sir, with the domestication of the sandalwood in Fiji
in the last 40 years and the establishment of planted sandalwood woodlots, the
Ministry of Forestry is confident that we are on track in reviving and
revitalizing the sandalwood industry. With
the right policies and regulations in place, we will never repeat the mistake
of the 19th century which almost led to the depletion of our natural
stock due to unsustainable harvest practice.
Honorable Speaker, Sir and members of the house, I thank you for your indulgence.