Minister says permanent log export ban in place

Minister says permanent log export ban in place

Indonesia has imposed a permanent ban on log exports to protect its dwindling tropical forests, Forestry Minister Muhammad Prakosa said on Tuesday.

Prakosa said around 5,000 hectares (12,300 acres) of the country's lush forests had been lost to illegal logging every day for the past five years.

"Starting on June 8, the export of logs and wood chips, which were previously limited, has been banned," Prakosa told reporters.

A permanent ban has taken months to implement.

In October 2001, the ministers of industry and trade and forestry issued a joint decree putting in place a temporary ban on exports of logs for wood chips.

That ban expired in April but was extended to May to give time for the government to discuss the matter with the IMF.

Prakosa did not say whether the permanent ban had been approved by the IMF. Fund officials were not immediately available to comment.

Indonesia first imposed a ban on log exports in 1980 but later replaced it with a 200 percent export tax. These moves were aimed at protecting local industry and encouraging exports of higher- value wood products.

But Jakarta gradually reduced the hefty taxes to 10 percent by the end of 2000 as part of an agreement with the Fund.

Jakarta has an around $5 billion loan program with the IMF which is linked to economic and legal reforms.

Indonesia's rain forests have been ravaged for years by over- logging, often with government approval. --Reuter