Dense forests and a clean environment have always been the top priorities for Bhutan. To safeguard its forests and environment, the Himalayan kingdom has significant restrictions in place on the cutting of its forests for wood. 

Hit by the pandemic, the government is now considering to relax those restrictions on the wood industry. The government is eyeing to save around US $41 million annually by promoting the export of wood-based products. 

Currently, Bhutan uses only 5% of its forests for commercial purposes. Agriculture minister Yeshey Panjor said Bhutan boasts about abundant forest resources while we imported US $41 million worth of wood and wood products.

Bhutan aims to export wood-based products to India and Bangladesh while the agriculture minister admits the challenges of matching the cost and qualities of products. 

https://kuenselonline.com/export-of-wood-based-products-to-save-govt-nu-3b/