(Business in Cameroon) - The Cameroonian government is preparing a strategic plan to develop the bamboo industry. The Minister of Forestry and Wildlife, Jules Doret Ndongo, has already launched a restricted national call for tenders under this initiative. The various bids will be opened on August 9, 2022, we learn.

The selected bidder will work on “the project to promote sustainable bamboo operations in the Central and Southern regions for the legal supply of markets; the project to create bamboo plantations in the Far North and North regions; the project to build the capacity of furniture artisans in the bamboo sector and the project to produce bamboo charcoal to supply urban markets,” the document reads.

The implementation of a national bamboo development strategy will allow Cameroon to tap into the sector’s full potential. The global bamboo and rattan market is estimated at CFA11,000 billion, according to the Ministry of Forests and Wildlife. Meanwhile, Cameroon is home to 15 species of bamboo out of the 1,642 identified in the world. The bamboo activity is likely to generate 250,000 jobs in the country, according to official estimates.

BRM