Bamboo action plan launched to boost exports | Daily Express Online - Sabah s Leading News Portal dailyexpress.com.my - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from dailyexpress.com.my Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Today, 55.3% of Malaysia’s total land area remains under forest cover.)
Malaysia recognises the importance of managing its natural resources intelligently, which includes the conservation of flora and fauna. Conserving the nation’s richly biodiverse forests and its ecosystem is a vital focus for the future, in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 2030.
Malaysia’s commitment – dating back to the 1992 Rio Earth Summit, to maintain at least 50% of its total land area under forest cover stays true, as currently 55.3% of the country’s land area remains under forest cover.
The country has a total forested area of 18.27 million hectares, of which 10.92 million hectares are Permanent Reserve Forests (PRF) and 3.31 million hectares are totally protected areas.
The bamboo industry holds great export potential.
MALAYSIA is well known for being a major exporter of timber and timber-related products, but not many may know about bamboo-based products, which have a strong growth potential for export.
There are 70 bamboo species in Malaysia, with 20 of the world’s best species found in the country’s native forests, including Beting, Semantan and Tumpat among others.
Bamboo is a commodity used by one third of the world’s population as an important material for house-building. It was also traditionally used for the making of rafts that function as an important medium of transportation and used by communities in agriculture, construction, arts and crafts and furniture among others.