Pterocarpus erinaceus: Still The Prey of Timber Traffickers Across West Africa

The report by the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) and the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) examines the status of Pterocarpus erinaceus (rosewood) trade in West Africa following a March 2022 CITES trade suspension. While international trafficking has slowed, the authors find that illegal logging persists in countries like Mali, Ghana, the Gambia, and Nigeria, often facilitated by corrupt officials. The report specifically criticizes Sierra Leone's request to export 160,000 cubic meters of stockpiled timber without a sustainable export quota and Mali's approved Non-Detriment Finding (NDF), which the authors claim is based on outdated or biased data and ignores critical environmental pressures. The document concludes that lifting the suspension for any country would undermine regional conservation efforts and risk a return to unsustainable 'boom and bust' logging cycles.

• The CITES trade suspension implemented in March 2022 has reduced but not entirely eliminated the export of Pterocarpus erinaceus from West Africa to China. Between the fourth quarter of 2022 and August 2023, more than 20,000 metric tons were exported, excluding a specific allowance for Guinea.
• Illegal logging of Pterocarpus erinaceus continues across its range despite international regulations, with documented persistence in Mali, Ghana, the Gambia, and Nigeria.
• Regional trafficking is supported by networks involving corruption, where traffickers in Ghana reportedly pay penalties of 1,500 to 1,700 cedis ($123-$140) to obtain transport permits from forestry officials.
• Sierra Leone's request to export 160,000 cubic meters of stockpiled rosewood is deemed premature because the country has not provided a scientific basis for a sustainable export quota, and a previous draft NDF showed that 31 of 53 studied Chiefdoms failed NDF criteria.
• The Non-Detriment Finding (NDF) approved for Mali in June 2023 is criticized for lacking a scientific authority's opinion, ignoring forest cover loss of approximately 100,000 hectares per year, and relying on potentially biased data from forest concession holders (2020-22) rather than the last reliable national inventory from 2014.
• The report warns that granting 'special authorizations' or accepting sub-par NDFs for individual countries would set a dangerous precedent, potentially increasing illegal trade and undermining the regional approach necessary to prevent the species' extinction.

APA

Center for International Environmental Law (2023). Pterocarpus erinaceus: Still The Prey of Timber Traffickers Across West Africa. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/EIA_US_Rosewood_Report_Briefing_1123_FINAL.pdf

Chicago

Center for International Environmental Law. Pterocarpus erinaceus: Still The Prey of Timber Traffickers Across West Africa. 2023. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/EIA_US_Rosewood_Report_Briefing_1123_FINAL.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Center for International Environmental Law |title=Pterocarpus erinaceus: Still The Prey of Timber Traffickers Across West Africa |date=October 2023 |url=https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/EIA_US_Rosewood_Report_Briefing_1123_FINAL.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{centerforinternationalenvironmentallaw2023pterocarpus, author = {{Center for International Environmental Law}}, title = {{Pterocarpus erinaceus: Still The Prey of Timber Traffickers Across West Africa}}, institution = {Center for International Environmental Law}, year = {2023}, month = oct, url = {https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/EIA_US_Rosewood_Report_Briefing_1123_FINAL.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }