Using the Cameroon route has raised transport charges by 30 percent and raised the world market cost of Congolese timber as a result of higher production costs induced by additional trasport and fuel charges. One of the companies, CIB, which operates in northern Congo, recorded an additional cost of about seven billion F CFA by exporting its timber through Douala. He conceded, however, that there was no alternative for timber dealers in northern Congo but to use the Cameroonian port. Nearly 30,000 tonnes of logs from northern Congo are currently stranded at Brazzaville railway station awaiting transportation to Pointe-Noire once railway traffic resumes. Traffic has stopped because of fighting between government forces and dissidents in recent weeks.
Timber is Congo's second export product after crude oil.
Some 500,000 cubic metres is exported each year from 20 million hectares of dense tropical forests which cover 60 percent of the country's 432,000 sq km land surface. Recipients should seek permission to reprint the article from the source listed above. Reading on line, downloading or other use of this information signifies acceptance of these conditions, and the Full Disclaimer.