THE number of rural Namibians deriving income from forestry products is set to increase if the newly appointed Minister of Agriculture, Water and Forestry has his way.

Minister John Mutorwa told the National Assembly recently that his Ministry would declare ten more community forests in the future and intensify the implementation of community-based forest management.

Currently, there are 134 gazetted community forests in Namibia, says the Director of Forestry, Joseph Hailwa.

However, Hailwa said it was difficult to say how many people were benefiting from community forests.

"It is not like in the rural conservancies, where members of the conservancy are registered," said Hailwa.

Mutorwa said his Ministry was monitoring the current benefit-sharing mechanism and would continue to advise communities how to make the most of their local forests.

He said equipment for clearing firebreaks in the Oshana and Kavango regions had been bought and fire management activities carried out in most fire-prone areas.

Hailwa said the limited number of trees with commercial value in Namibia's community forests was one of the challenges facing the management of these forests.

"Forests provide more of a subsistence living.

We do not have many trees of commercial value, unlike in countries such as DRC, where you have huge forests with a lot of timber.

So the income is quite limited," Hailwa told The Namibian.

It is against this background that the Ministry includes the gathering of non-timber resources in the community forests.

These include thatching grass, grass for animals, fruits and honey.

Mutorwa said his Ministry also planned to establish three orchards in regions such as Kavango and Caprivi.

Two five-hectare plots will be established at Engombe in the Oshana Region for the cultivation of marula trees and the Jatropha curcas plant, whose seeds are used to make bio-diesel.

The Ministry has earmarked about N$77 million of its N$948 million budget for the forestry development programme.