Commissioner of Forestry Mr. James Singh explained that "certification" is the buzzword that determines what forestry products would enter the premium markets. It is based primarily on observance of legal requirements for logging and forestry management, he said.

Mr. Singh declared that Barama, now in its 12thth year of operating a 1.6 million hectare forest concession in northwestern Guyana, has complied with the Code of Practice for Forest Operations and has met all legal requirements of the Guyana Forestry Commission.

He assured that the Guyana Forestry Commission supports the efforts by Barama to attain national certification standards that are endorsed by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC).

The Commission, he added, applauds Barama for individually seeking full FSC certification, even though its Guyana operations have generally satisfied all levels of national monitoring and compliance tests.

Barama's operations are monitored by the Guyana Forestry Commission to ensure that the company observes sound logging practices.

To help this process, the Edinburgh Centre for Tropical Forests was contracted by Barama for a seven-year period (1993 to 2000) to conduct major research. Some 50 permanent sample plots were established in the Northwest concessions from which valuable data was collected on various aspects of the dynamics of the forest, the timber company said in a press release.

Singh confirmed that data from that research was now being used by the Commission to develop growth and yield a model for the country.

According to Mr. James Keylon, the company's Managing Director, Barama is moving for full certification with the twin purpose of maintaining its share of the export markets and expanding it.

He explained that the US$150M modern plywood company currently obtains 50% of its revenues from exports to North America and Europe.

Better management of its forestry resources, he said, will get Barama ahead of its competitors on the world market.

"This means more export earnings for Guyana, and greater job security for the 1,200 workforce at Barama," Keylon added in the press release.

The company's Forest Planning Manager, Mr. Luvendra Sukraj, said Barama is now the first company in South and Central America to embark on a two-stage Certification Support Programme (CSP) which is run by a Swiss-based certifying body (SGS).

The stages are to (a) support efforts to improve forest management through a structured auditing programme; and (b) track timber and products from participating forests through processing to the retail market.

Under the CSP, Barama has recently received certification for its forest management and chain of custody for its manufacturing operations, the release said.

Sukraj said the company has started a project to initially certify about 550,000 hectares of its concession, and then work progressively towards the entire concession.

He said an important partner in the certification process is the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), which is giving Barama valuable financial and technical support.

He added that once Barama attains certification, its model can be used throughout the Guianas eco-region for all stakeholders in the forestry sector.

Sukhraj stated that Barama's certification effort would place Guyana in the forefront of world forestry and sustainability practices since the current project has the potential of being the largest FSC certified natural tropical forest in the world.