tag:theconversation.com,2011:/us/topics/rosewood-55499/articlesRosewood – The Conversation2020-01-13T13:55:38Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1248692020-01-13T13:55:38Z2020-01-13T13:55:38ZRestricting trade in endangered species can backfire, triggering market booms<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/308132/original/file-20191220-11919-12j417i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=34%2C34%2C3777%2C2363&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Rosewood, the name for several endangered tree species that make beautiful furniture, being loaded in Madagascar. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/toamasina-madagascar-april-12-2014-loading-733827985">Pierre-Yves Babelon/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Every year humans buy and sell hundreds of millions of wild animals and plants around the world. Much of this commerce is legal, but <a href="https://theconversation.com/where-is-all-the-ivory-from-using-forensic-science-and-elephant-dna-to-stop-poachers-43443">illegal trade and over-harvesting</a> have driven many species toward extinction.</p>
<p>One common response is to adopt <a href="https://theconversation.com/explainer-what-is-cites-and-why-should-we-care-65510">bans on trading</a> in threatened or endangered species. But research shows that this approach can <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/447529a">backfire</a>. Restricting high-value species can actually <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/194008291200500302">trigger market booms</a>.</p>
<p>I study <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=P-E002UAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">environmental globalization</a> and have spent nearly 10 years analyzing trade between Madagascar and China in rosewood, or hong mu in Mandarin. Chinese people use this term to describe <a href="http://www.chinatimber.org/news/64202.html">29 species</a> of very expensive hardwoods, <a href="https://theconversation.com/global-timber-trafficking-harms-forests-and-costs-billions-of-dollars-heres-how-to-curb-it-93115">many of which are endangered</a>. </p>
<p>In my research, I’ve seen the complexities of endangered species protection. On both the supply and demand sides, restricting international trade in high-value endangered species like rosewood can sometimes cause more harm than good. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/308734/original/file-20200107-123389-19d3f0p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/308734/original/file-20200107-123389-19d3f0p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/308734/original/file-20200107-123389-19d3f0p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308734/original/file-20200107-123389-19d3f0p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308734/original/file-20200107-123389-19d3f0p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308734/original/file-20200107-123389-19d3f0p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308734/original/file-20200107-123389-19d3f0p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308734/original/file-20200107-123389-19d3f0p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Rosewood furniture and boards fill a southern China warehouse.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">George Zhu</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Treaties trigger speculation</h2>
<p>The main global treaty governing wildlife trade is the <a href="https://www.cites.org/">Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora</a>, or CITES. CITES members meet every two to three years to adjust trade restrictions on target species. In today’s speculative markets, CITES rulings can set off damaging market dynamics. </p>
<p>Since the early 2000s, markets for certain high-value endangered species – <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2014.09.020">elephants</a>, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2016.08.001">rhinoceros</a>, <a href="https://www.environment.gov.za/sites/default/files/docs/publications/bankingextinction_endangeredspecices_speculation.pdf">tigers</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/24694452.2019.1613955">rosewood</a> – have fundamentally transformed. Consumer purchases no longer trigger market booms. Speculative investments do. </p>
<p>Investors are buying endangered species not to use and own, but in anticipation that their prices will rise. This shift explains why international trade restrictions often do not protect endangered species.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/308387/original/file-20200102-11929-zwutec.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/308387/original/file-20200102-11929-zwutec.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/308387/original/file-20200102-11929-zwutec.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=373&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308387/original/file-20200102-11929-zwutec.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=373&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308387/original/file-20200102-11929-zwutec.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=373&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308387/original/file-20200102-11929-zwutec.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=469&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308387/original/file-20200102-11929-zwutec.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=469&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308387/original/file-20200102-11929-zwutec.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=469&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Rosewood has become the most trafficked group of endangered species in the world, according to data covering 2005-2014.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Annah Zhu, data from UN Office on Drugs and Crime</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Rosewood speculation has surpassed big animals</h2>
<p>China is a <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/19/science/wildlife-trafficking-china.html">big player</a> in the illegal wildlife trade and the primary destination for many trafficked species. The Chinese economy is also subject to rampant speculation that manifests in erratic housing and stock market prices. Rosewood and many other endangered species, it turns out, are subject to these speculative dynamics as well.</p>
<p>Rosewood has been used for centuries to make traditional Chinese furniture that dates back to the Ming and Qing dynasties. Now, due to a revitalization of this style, the wood has become the world’s <a href="https://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/wildlife/World_Wildlife_Crime_Report_2016_final.pdf">most trafficked group of wildlife</a>, surpassing ivory, rhino horn and big cats combined. Some species of rosewood are valued at <a href="http://finance.sina.com.cn/money/collection/jjmq/20101102/14208886674.shtml">nearly their weight in gold</a>.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/308391/original/file-20200102-11904-1wxtf17.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/308391/original/file-20200102-11904-1wxtf17.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/308391/original/file-20200102-11904-1wxtf17.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=395&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308391/original/file-20200102-11904-1wxtf17.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=395&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308391/original/file-20200102-11904-1wxtf17.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=395&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308391/original/file-20200102-11904-1wxtf17.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=496&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308391/original/file-20200102-11904-1wxtf17.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=496&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308391/original/file-20200102-11904-1wxtf17.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=496&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Unfinished rosewood chests in a furniture manufacturing facility in Zhongshan, China.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">George Zhu</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Over the past decade, rosewood has become a type of stock exchange – “<a href="http://www.china.org.cn/business/2011-01/17/content_21756641.htm">a playground for investors</a>,” as one account described it. China Central Television has condemned rosewood market speculation as “<a href="https://wechat.kanfb.com/bussiness/3399">more ferocious than real estate</a>.” </p>
<p>Similar dynamics have been documented for ivory and rhino horn. As with rosewood, the speculative value of these resources comes more from their rarity than their cultural appeal.</p>
<h2>The ‘Madagascar phenomenon’</h2>
<p>In this speculative climate, international trade restrictions under CITES heighten demand, as I learned while interviewing timber importers in Shanghai in 2014, 2015 and 2017.</p>
<p>The CITES meeting in 2013, which imposed new restrictions on rosewood trade, provoked “<a href="http://collection.sina.com.cn/jjhm/2016-10-11/doc-ifxwrhpm2900127.shtml">strong earthquakes</a>” in the rosewood market. As soon as news of the regulations reached Chinese timber markets, prices of the targeted species climbed to record highs. The same thing happened after CITES meetings in <a href="http://blog.sina.com.cn/s/blog_ae5e121c0102wsmm.html">2016</a> and <a href="http://www.guwan.com/hangqing/100034811.html">2019</a>, where trade in additional timber species were restricted. </p>
<p>Indeed, CITES is considered a “<a href="http://collection.sina.com.cn/jjhm/hmsc/2016-12-29/doc-ifxzczfc6563439.shtml">fuse</a>” that ignites new rounds of market speculation. The effect has been so pronounced for rosewood from Madagascar that Chinese timber importers call it “<a href="http://collection.sina.com.cn/jjhm/2016-10-11/doc-ifxwrhpm2900127.shtml">the Madagascar phenomenon</a>.” </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"687678268829515776"}"></div></p>
<h2>President Xi Jinping’s fight</h2>
<p>After taking office in 2013, President Xi Jinping embarked on a massive <a href="https://www.scmp.com/topics/xi-jinpings-anti-corruption-campaign">anti-corruption campaign</a> that hit many Chinese luxury markets hard. New laws unrelated to the environment have done more to reduce traffic in rosewood and other valuable endangered species than most international trade restrictions. </p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/308136/original/file-20191220-11951-6vg7cx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/308136/original/file-20191220-11951-6vg7cx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308136/original/file-20191220-11951-6vg7cx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308136/original/file-20191220-11951-6vg7cx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308136/original/file-20191220-11951-6vg7cx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308136/original/file-20191220-11951-6vg7cx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308136/original/file-20191220-11951-6vg7cx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Chinese President Xi Jinping initiated an anti-corruption campaign that has unexpectedly reduced demand for certain endangered species such as rosewood.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/China-Macao/12a9125d7bc54bb89a117ef631b5d463/5/0">AP</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The Chinese timber importers I interviewed estimated that Xi’s anti-corruption campaign had reduced rosewood sales by 30%-50%. Businesses stopped courting politicians with luxury rosewood furnishings. Sales of <a href="http://english.sina.com/p/2013/0901/624432.html">shark fin soup </a> and other delicacies derived from threatened species also sharply declined.</p>
<p>This effect was largely accidental. Endangered species just happen to be a primary tool for bribing politicians in China. </p>
<p>China has also pursued more direct measures, such as a successful <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2015/12/08/lifeline-for-elephants-ivory-price-halves-in-china-after-xi-pledges-ban/">domestic ban on ivory trade</a> adopted in 2017. Unlike international trade bans, which the Chinese are less likely to follow at home, domestic bans send signals to investors that prices will drop in the future. </p>
<p>Such domestic bans have weakened the speculative potential of ivory, rhino horn and tiger parts. Investors offload stocks in anticipation of the prohibitions, potentially leading to “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2017.05.017">fire sales</a>.” Prices then plummet, and investors don’t want to speculate. </p>
<h2>Rosewood plantations</h2>
<p>In response to exorbitant rosewood prices and dwindling supplies, the Chinese government and private investors are pursuing another strategy: establishing rosewood plantations across southern China. </p>
<p>I visited three of these plantations in Guangdong Province in 2018, including a 2,000 hectare government-run <a href="https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E8%82%87%E5%BA%86%E5%8C%97%E5%B2%AD%E5%B1%B1%E6%A3%AE%E6%9E%97%E5%85%AC%E5%9B%AD">demonstration plantation</a>. They were replete with endangered hardwoods from across Asia, as well as “understory economies” of goods raised below the trees, such as premium teas, herbs for Chinese medicine and free-range chickens, which provide financial support for growing the trees. These plantations are being promoted as an ecological and economical way to sustain the species. </p>
<p>Reporters in China assert that the country is “<a href="http://finance.sina.com/bg/investment/sinacn/20120924/2048602308.html">at the forefront of the world</a>” in establishing endangered hardwood plantations. Few other countries promote this type of forestry on a comparable scale. International conservation organizations typically focus instead on restricting logging and trade.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/308394/original/file-20200102-11924-4ub28b.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/308394/original/file-20200102-11924-4ub28b.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/308394/original/file-20200102-11924-4ub28b.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=451&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308394/original/file-20200102-11924-4ub28b.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=451&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308394/original/file-20200102-11924-4ub28b.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=451&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308394/original/file-20200102-11924-4ub28b.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=567&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308394/original/file-20200102-11924-4ub28b.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=567&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308394/original/file-20200102-11924-4ub28b.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=567&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A government-run demonstration plantation nurtures some of the trees collectively known as rosewood.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Annah Zhu</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>However, I believe that people living in places where rosewood still grows are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoforum.2017.08.010">more likely to be receptive</a> to investments in sustainable forestry than to trade restrictions and funding for <a href="https://time.com/4288287/china-thailand-rosewood-environment-logging/">anti-logging conservation militias</a>. Focusing only on restricting the logging and trade of rosewood often <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.polgeo.2017.06.014">empowers a small group of elite exporters</a> who have illicit access to overseas demand, without benefiting the wider community. The <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2019.01.013">same dynamic</a> plays out in the economies of other endangered resources, including ivory, rhino horn and tiger parts. </p>
<p>Efforts to reduce the trade in endangered species will be more effective if they come from within China, rather than being internationally imposed. For rosewood in particular, I see creative policies that encourage reforestation and sustainable forestry as a more promising path forward than international trade restrictions backed by militarized conservation campaigns. </p>
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Annah Lake Zhu does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>For decades nations have worked to curb international sales of endangered plants and animals. But in countries like China, with high demand and speculative investors, that strategy fuels bidding wars.Annah Lake Zhu, Postdoctoral Researcher, University of California, BerkeleyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1225602019-08-29T10:16:31Z2019-08-29T10:16:31ZAfrica’s Mukula trees score a victory as trade is put under closer scrutiny<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/289865/original/file-20190828-184252-of5qb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Rosewood is coveted for its colour </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Winai Tepsuttinun/Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>CITES – the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora – <a href="https://www.cites.org/eng/CITES_conference_responds_to_extinction_crisis_by_strengthening_international_trade_regime_for_wildlife_28082019">has decided</a> to include Mukula trees, one of many rosewood species, in its Annex II listing. Species covered by CITES are listed in three Annexes according to how much protection they need. Annex II includes species not directly threatened with extinction, but in which trade must be controlled to ensure their survival. The Conversation Africa’s Moina Spooner asked Paolo Cerutti and Nils Bourland about the decision.</em></p>
<p><strong>Why is Mukula wood so sought after?</strong></p>
<p>Rosewood is an informal term which refers to a group of hardwood species that are red in colour and widely used in furniture processing. Historically, the “real” rosewood belonged to the <em>Dalbergia</em> genus as found in Brazil, India or Madagascar. But with time, the name has been commonly used to group strong woods with a reddish colour. </p>
<p>Demand for rosewoods has been growing for several years, particularly in Asia. China is one of the biggest rosewood consumers and, since 2000, has established an <a href="http://hongzhanju.net/nd.jsp?id=114">official list</a> of <a href="https://www.forest-trends.org/wp-content/uploads/imported/tropical-hardwood-flows-in-china-v12_12_3_2013-pdf.pdf">33 tree species</a> harvested across the tropics in Africa (five), Latin America (seven) and Asia (21), and imported and traded under the “Rosewood” name. </p>
<p>The wood fetches very high prices in China as it’s used to make <a href="https://www.forest-trends.org/publications/chinas-hongmu-consumption-boom/"><em>hongmu</em></a> – antique red-wood furniture. <em>Hongmu</em> was historically used by the imperial elite and is now coveted by China’s rising wealthy middle-class.</p>
<p>Because the usual rosewood tree species – like the <em>Dalbergias</em> – have been over-harvested for decades and are now <a href="https://www.wood-database.com/hardwoods/fabaceae/dalbergia/">endangered</a>, traders have tried to diversify, using trees which could provide similar colours and strength. </p>
<p>Mukula – <em>Pterocarpus tinctorius</em> – is <a href="http://www.ville-ge.ch/musinfo/bd/cjb/africa/details.php?langue=fr&id=62768">the local</a> name for rosewood harvested in Angola, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Malawi, Mozambique, and Tanzania. </p>
<p>Even though it is not one of the tree species labelled as “rosewood” under China’s official list, traders and consumers still want it for its colour and strength. When freshly cut and debarked, Mukula’s timber has a bright brown-reddish colour – produced by oils and chemicals it contains – which turns to darker brown with time and exposure to light. These oils are also what make the wood durable. </p>
<p>As a result Mukula became part of the <a href="https://www.forest-trends.org/wp-content/uploads/imported/tropical-hardwood-flows-in-china-v12_12_3_2013-pdf.pdf">wider rosewood trade</a> that affects much of southeast Asia and parts of Africa and South America.</p>
<p><strong>What was the basis of the CITES decision to control the trade in mukula?</strong></p>
<p>Government seizures of illegally harvested Mukula started to be reported in the media, mostly in Zambia, <a href="http://www.daily-mail.co.zm/mukula-auction-raises-k7m/">about</a> five years ago. </p>
<p>But the seizures didn’t stop traders; the volumes harvested and traded increased year after year. Eventually, <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-zambia-has-not-benefitted-from-its-rosewood-trade-with-china-98092">media</a> and political attention started to flag the negative environmental and socio-economic impacts of the trade, bringing Mukula to the attention of CITES. </p>
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<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-zambia-has-not-benefitted-from-its-rosewood-trade-with-china-98092">Why Zambia has not benefitted from its rosewood trade with China</a>
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<p>Mukula in Zambia mainly <a href="https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/2a87/22f4edc1417a997460046d56070506955ba0.pdf">occurs</a> in the country’s miombo fragile woodlands. It’s an area of great importance for local communities, because it’s a <a href="https://www.intechopen.com/books/biodiversity-in-ecosystems-linking-structure-and-function/miombo-woodlands-research-towards-the-sustainable-use-of-ecosystem-services-in-southern-africa">source of</a> livelihoods for them. It also hosts flagship fauna species, including monkeys, that feed on its fruits. </p>
<p><strong>How will the decision now be implemented and which countries does it affect most?</strong></p>
<p>Mukula logs, sawn wood, veneer sheets and plywood are affected by this listing. It is important to remember that this decision doesn’t ban the trade of Mukula. Instead, it seeks to increase levels of monitoring so that we can be more and better informed about illegal trade and over-harvesting.</p>
<p>After the decision enters into force, all countries exporting Mukula will have to conduct what is known in CITES as “Non-Detriment Findings”. Range States – Angola, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Malawi, Mozambique, and Tanzania – are immediately concerned.</p>
<p>This means that sustainability, legality and the ability to trace the wood from stump to market must be guaranteed and CITES permits will have to be issued when the species is traded. The permit is issued if it is demonstrated that the traded volume – the number of felled trees – does not threaten the survival of the species at the place of harvest in natural forests. Planted species are not considered.</p>
<p>In addition, the convention requires that exporting and importing countries report to the CITES secretariat, which enters the information into a specific database for global monitoring. The CITES’ Plant Committee is then mandated to conduct periodic reviews to detect abnormal situations, for example discrepancies in trade statistics.</p>
<p>There are several other mechanisms which allow irregularities in trade to be monitored at national and international levels. Civil society, NGOs and researchers can also play a great role, drawing attention on unclear situations and illegal activities.</p>
<p><strong>Despite different bans and restrictions Mukula harvest and trade hasn’t stopped. What will be the challenges in implementing this decision?</strong></p>
<p>Various timber-producing countries have adopted harvesting and/or trading bans on species of particular socio-economic and environmental value. Yet bans can only be as good as their enforcement and monitoring are. Many countries do adopt bans but not all enforce and monitor their impact. These are sovereign decisions, generally dictated more by the politics of the day than by any serious attempt at understanding their environmental consequences.</p>
<p>Mukula in Zambia is a clear example of this. Multiple bans <a href="https://www.africanfarming.com/zambia-conditionally-lifts-ban-mukula-trade/">have been</a> adopted and lifted in recent years. But these decisions were dictated less by environmental considerations than political ones. </p>
<p>For example, at the beginning of 2016, a “Mukula timber harvesting and movement ban” was issued, then lifted in July 2016, and then reinstated at the beginning of 2017. Yet during all those years, no new assessment was conducted on the ground about the sustainable harvesting levels of Mukula, so traders were able to continue increasing the harvested volumes irrespective of the bans.</p>
<p>The Annex II listing is a great outcome for Mukula. It adds to the force of national decisions, like bans, and makes cheating much more difficult. It also gives it international attention.</p>
<p>But to beat the unsustainable harvesting of rosewoods, we need to aim for even more encompassing solutions. For example, CITES should consider a genus-wide listing which includes some <em>Pterocarpus</em> species, so that traders cannot just as easily move on to the next Rosewood tree and deplete it.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/122560/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Part of the research referenced in this article has been supported by the UK Economic and Social Research Council and the Department of International Development through the project ‘Natural Resources, Rural Poverty and China-Africa Trade: Equity and Sustainability in Informal Commodities Value Chains’ (ES/M00659X/1) and Danida (Denmark), Irish Aid and Sida (Sweden). It is also part of the CGIAR Research Programme on Forests, Trees and Agroforestry (FTA), with support from the CGIAR Fund Donors: <a href="http://www.cgiar.org/our-funders">www.cgiar.org/our-funders</a> </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nils Bourland works for the Wood Biology Service of the Royal Museum for Central Africa (Tervuren, Belgium), the Center for International Forestry Research (Bogor, Indonesia) and Research and Solutions Development (Kigali, Rwanda).</span></em></p>CITES’ decision seeks to increase levels of monitoring so that we can be more and better informed about the illegal trade of Mukula and over-harvesting.Paolo Omar Cerutti, Senior Scientist, Centre for International Forestry ResearchNils Bourland, Senior Associate, Centre for International Forestry ResearchLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/980922018-06-25T13:53:58Z2018-06-25T13:53:58ZWhy Zambia has not benefitted from its rosewood trade with China<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/224034/original/file-20180620-137711-kxzb6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Rosewood is popular in China for 'hongmu' - antique furniture.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock/HelloRF Zcool</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Rosewood is the generic name for several dark-red hardwood species found in tropical regions across the globe. It fetches very high prices because it’s strong, heavy, has a beautiful red hue and takes polish very well – and because the trees are becoming increasingly scarce. On the Chinese market in 2014, for example, prices were <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/5134ca48-bd41-11e4-b523-00144feab7de">in excess</a> of USD$17,000 per ton. That’s ten times higher than the price of more standard tropical hardwood.</p>
<p>There’s a huge demand in China for rosewood logs to make <em>hongmu</em> – antique furniture. <em>Hongmu</em> was used historically by the imperial elite and is now <a href="https://www.forest-trends.org/publications/chinas-hongmu-consumption-boom/">coveted</a> by China’s rising middle class. Supplies of the wood from markets in Latin America and South-East Asia have dwindled in recent years, so Africa has become a key source. Within Africa, Zambia has become one of China’s main rosewood exporters in the past decade.</p>
<p>But the harvesting of rosewood is often not done sustainably. Several African species have already <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2016/02/threatened-west-african-rosewood-species-gets-cites-protection/">received protection</a> under the Convention on Trade in Endangered Species. </p>
<p>We <a href="https://www.cifor.org/library/6826/informality-global-capital-rural-development-and-the-environment-mukula-rosewood-trade-between-china-and-zambia/">researched</a> the rosewood trade between China and Zambia in 2016 and 2017. We wanted to study the relationship between global and local sources of capital, rural development and environmental impacts. We also wanted to see whether regulations, adopted to preserve natural resources like rosewood, provide the right set of incentives and disincentives for business to be sustainable. </p>
<p>The most common name used to identify rosewood in Zambia is <em>mukula</em>. But because several different species are categorised as <em>mukula</em>, and because comprehensive inventories are lacking, current rosewood stocks are not known. Legal uncertainties and corruption mean that laws, regulations, or sustainable forest management plans, related to rosewood, are rarely implemented and monitored. </p>
<p>This means that Zambia doesn’t benefit much from rosewood trade. Its forests are being decimated, causing serious environmental degradation. And though rural Zambians and their families do profit, this is short-lived. We also found that because the trade isn’t being effectively monitored or taxed, the government loses about USD$ 3.2 million in potential revenue every year. </p>
<h2>Monitoring challenges</h2>
<p>A couple of big factors have allowed this situation to thrive. </p>
<p>The first is that mukula was only recently added to Zambia’s list of official commercial species. It was previously recorded under the general term “other”, so its trade wasn’t properly recorded or taxed appropriately. In addition, even though there’s an export ban on mukula leaving in log form, it has been allowed to leave the country almost exclusively in log form. Aside from legal considerations, this defies the purpose of the ban, which is to boost local processing and job creation in Zambia.</p>
<p>The second is that the government has been issuing and lifting various regulations in rapid sequence over the years, which have left enforcement agencies on the ground unclear about what rules applied where and when. This has boosted corruption, which means many officials have no incentive to ensure the trade is well regulated. About US$1.7 million is paid in rosewood-linked bribes each year. Most of which are collected along Zambian roads where trucks must make payments to proceed towards the points of export. </p>
<p>The results of these legal uncertainties can be seen in the graph below which shows log exports, as recorded by Zambian authorities through the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations, and log imports as recorded by Chinese authorities.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/223788/original/file-20180619-126559-7e76s9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/223788/original/file-20180619-126559-7e76s9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=415&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/223788/original/file-20180619-126559-7e76s9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=415&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/223788/original/file-20180619-126559-7e76s9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=415&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/223788/original/file-20180619-126559-7e76s9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=522&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/223788/original/file-20180619-126559-7e76s9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=522&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/223788/original/file-20180619-126559-7e76s9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=522&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<p>The discrepancies, in volume and value, between the declarations are huge. For example, in 2016, Zambia declared exports for about 3,000 cubic metres at an approximate value of USD$900,000. China, meanwhile, declared imports of about 61,000 cubic metres for an approximate value of USD$87 million. Because Chinese customs do not recognise mukula as rosewood, we cannot determine the amount, but because Zambia exports only a few species whose volumes haven’t changed much over the years, we are sure that mukula represents the vast majority of those volumes.</p>
<p>It’s clear that a series of measures, in particular log-export and production bans <a href="https://af.reuters.com/article/africaTech/idAFL8N1PJ552">adopted</a> over the years, don’t work. Bans only make sense when coupled with other measures, like effective enforcement or a system of incentives. In fact, bans have contributed to keep the rosewood market underground without really affecting harvest and trade. But solutions are possible.</p>
<h2>Focus areas</h2>
<p>Our research suggests that four points need immediate attention.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>The strategy of continuously adopting and lifting production and export bans is not working and should be abandoned. If a ban is deemed necessary, a coherent enforcement strategy must be adopted, enforced and monitored. If not, The Zambian Forestry Department should propose a revision of the legal framework and ensure logs for export are appropriately taxed. </p></li>
<li><p>The Zambian government must support the Forests Act of 2015. This aims to protect the country’s forests and people’s long-term livelihoods by implementing innovative management and monitoring measures, including community, joint and private forest management approaches.</p></li>
<li><p>The governments of Zambia and China need to engage in discussions with their respective CITES management and scientific authorities and list <em>mukula</em> as a species that may be threatened with extinction, should the trade not be closely controlled. This would hopefully limit international demand.</p></li>
<li><p>Countries in sub-Saharan Africa should learn from each other’s environmental challenges and work better together. While Zambian forests were emptied of rosewood – and the government was deliberating potential countermeasures – buyers and traders <a href="http://pubs.iied.org/pdfs/13603IIED.pdf">had already</a> moved into Malawi, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Mozambique. While trying to perfect domestic laws, the precious resource will already be gone. </p></li>
</ol>
<p>By working together, the battle to save these fragile forests could be won. </p>
<p><em>Valued contributions to the research leading to this article were also made by: Xiaoxue Weng, George Schoneveld, Kaala Moombe, Nils Bourland, and Robert Nasi.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/98092/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The research leading to this article was supported by the UK Economic and Social Research Council and the Department of International Development through the project ‘Natural Resources, Rural Poverty and China-Africa Trade: Equity and Sustainability in Informal Commodities Value Chains’ (ES/M00659X/1) and Danida (Denmark), Irish Aid and Sida (Sweden). It is also part of the CGIAR Research Programme on Forests, Trees and Agroforestry (FTA), with support from the CGIAR Fund Donors: <a href="http://www.cgiar.org/our-funders">www.cgiar.org/our-funders</a></span></em></p>Zambia’s rosewood forests are being decimated but it’s still not reaping the full benefits of exporting the coveted wood to China.Paolo Omar Cerutti, Senior Scientist Centre for International Forestry Research, Centre for International Forestry ResearchDavison Gumbo, Scientist with the Center for International Forestry Research, Centre for International Forestry ResearchLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.