Cambodia seeks Chinese paulownia for economic, environment benefits
Cambodia announced on Monday plans to introduce paulownia from China, as the Southeast Asian country aims to improve its economy and forest conservation efforts and promote sustainable development.
The Ministry of Environment of Cambodia and Beijing Guotong Green Engineering Co signed a memorandum of understanding ( MOU) Monday in Phnom Penh, the capital, on introducing paulownia into Cambodia.
“Beijing Guotong Green Engineering Co is the first Chinese company to help solve our environmental issue. By introducing paulownia, we hope to reduce rural residents’ reliance on forests, protect original trees and expand forest coverage,” Eang Sophalleth of the Ministry of Environment told the Global Times Monday.
An estimated 31,141 households in 235 villages across Cambodia depend on forests, according to Sophalleth. These residents tend to cut trees on a large scale for money, leading to deforestation and degradation, he said, noting the country’s forest coverage is only 50 percent.
However, planting paulownia could help improve the situation because of its advantages such as fast growth and sound wood quality, said SAY Samal, Minister of Environment of Cambodia.
Paulownia trees can grow more than 5 meters in a year and can be harvested in three to five years, Su Yongli, director of Beijing Guotong Green Engineering Co, told the Global Times Sunday.
In addition, paulownia wood is welcome in Japan, South Korea, Thailand as well as the European and US markets thanks to being lightweight and resistant to fire and corrosion, Su said.
According to statistics from the Chinese General Administration of Customs, the average export value of paulownia panels alone was $ 110 million from 2013 to 2015. Log exports are forbidden.
An overwhelming majority of paulownia product exports are not specifically recorded by customs, Su noted.
Though the prospects of paulownia plantation are promising, there are natural and political challenges, Sophalleth said.
“As for the challenge from nature, we are planning to carry out a pilot program to test the feasibility of planting paulownia in Cambodia. But we don’t know how the public will respond, though we believe planting paulownia is economical and profitable,” he explained.
The Cambodian side said it hopes that China can provide financial and technical support as well as equipment and human resources as the two countries are comprehensive strategic partners, Sophalleth noted.
Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed the “One Belt and One Road” initiative in 2013 with the aim of providing experience on sustainable development and carrying out cooperation with countries and regions along the routes.
In September 2015, Xi announced plans for China to set up South- South cooperation aid funds and pledged $ 2 billion for economic as well as sustainable development in developing countries, the Xinhua News Agency reported.
Cambodia has appealed to all Chinese companies in the environmental protection and natural resources preservation sectors to come to look for opportunities in the country and help Cambodia with its environment issue, Sophalleth said.