UN ban on timber exports slashes government revenue

The international embargo on timber exports by Liberia is likely to deprive the country's government of US $13 million a year - equivalent to 18 percent of its total revenue, according to a UN report published on Friday. Last May, the UN Security Council extended existing sanctions against the government of President Charles Taylor earlier this year to include a ban on timber exports from July 7. It argued that Taylor was using revenue from timber to buy arms illegally, many of which were being used to fuel conflicts in other countries in West Africa. The ban on timber exports was added to an existing ban on diamond exports by Liberia and an international arms embargo against the country. It has been in a state of civil war for most of the past 14 years. However, the United Nations noted in its preliminary assessment of the impact of timber sanctions noted that logging activities had ground to a halt since April in any case as a result of advances by rebel forces. In recent months they have captured the main timber forests in southeastern Liberia and the ports of Buchanan, Greenville and Harper which have traditionally been used to export wood products. The UN report staid the halting of timber exports would to lead to the loss of 5,000 to 8,000 jobs in Liberia, inflicting further hardship on the country's civilian population.