| European
Tropical Forest Research Network |
BAMBOO SECTOR DEVELOPMENT AS A MEANS FOR SUSTAINING FOREST LIVELIHOODS
By Herwig M. Cleuren
Bamboo has always been a vital part of the livelihood of millions of forest-dwelling people in tropical regions. Traditionally, bamboo is harvested in the natural forest and its use is limited to temporal constructions and low-quality utensils prone to rapid decay. Nevertheless, resource management and technical improvements can convert this fast-growing grass into a durable raw material for construction purposes and a wide range of semi-industrialised products. New industrial applications and modern construction design have both demonstrated bamboo's huge potential, but the bamboo sector in China is the only one reported to be thriving. In the last 20 years China has established an integrated production chain of bamboo plantations, semi-processing and industrial plants manufacturing bamboo flooring, furniture, furnishings, charcoal and fresh bamboo shoots for the domestic and export markets.
New opportunities
There are promising trends outside China where bamboo is being grown as a durable
building material and income-generating resource for rural people. The Philippines
has a rural bamboo handicraft sector that has been able to reach European and
US markets after investments in improved designs. In rural areas, bamboo harvesters
and craftsmen acquire an important part of their income from bamboo. Moreover,
in Colombia and Ecuador growing bamboo on small plots is becoming a lucrative
option for smallholders and the bamboo construction sector is experiencing a
boom period after years of neglect.
However, the bamboo sector is, in most countries, still part of the informal and backward rural economy and seemingly unable to grab the large potential +represented by the Chinese bamboo industry. This raises the question of the bottlenecks facing bamboo development. Many of these inhibiting factors are at the policy level and are additional to a lack of knowledge among the important stakeholders and a widespread stigma of bamboo as a poor man's timber. Convincing and informing users and policymakers of bamboo's versatility may fit in with a strategy of poverty alleviation and reducing pressure on tropical forests. Smallholders at the forest fringe can, in particular, improve their livelihood by processing bamboo or growing it in their backyard. At the same time, a large stock of bamboo contributes to broader environmental goals of erosion control, reforestation and watershed management.
For tropical countries confronted with rural poverty and shrinking forests, bamboo offers a sustainable option with considerable potential. However, it will require joint efforts by the international donor community, research institutes, national governments and pioneer investors to duplicate China's bamboo boom and turn the belief that bamboo may become the timber of the 21st century into a reality.
Further information:
Dr Herwig M. Cleuren
INBAR (International Network for Bamboo and Rattan)
E-mail: hcleuren@inbar.int