Papua New Guinea's Government says it will soon announce a downstream processing policy for the forestry sector.
The Post Courier reports that Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare made the announcement at the 42nd International Tropical Timber Congress in Port Moresby.
Sir Michael said downstream processing will allow further processing and export of value added forest products.
During the past five years, a total of 236,000 cubic metres of processed products were exported, earning PNG $190 million US dollars.
But the Prime Minister has voiced concern that global campaigns by local and international NGOs are beginning to strangle lucrative overseas markets for PNG timber exports.
Sir Michael said the campaigns were forcing developed economies to impose non-tariff barriers, in contravention of World Trade Organisation obligations.
It's estimated that almost 90 percent of logging in PNG is illegal.
However Sir Michael says many of the allegations of illegality in the tropical wood trade are unfounded and come from activists and countries remote from the realities of developing economies.
