Johannesburg – In South Africa, Woodlands provide an important source of income, ranging from wood for domestic use to commercial use.
However, Forestry, Fisheries, and the Environment Deputy Minister Bernice Swarts warned that: “This biome is fast reducing in size and extent due to land conversion for mining, housing, alternative land use, human settlements, and other commercial construction projects”.
The deputy minister made her remarks in Roodepoort on Tuesday, 24 March 2026, during a ForestDay event.
The world commemorated International Day of Forests on 21 March 2026.
“The International Day of Forests is celebrated under the theme ‘Forests and economies’, celebrating the critical role that trees and forests play in driving economic prosperity,” Deputy Minister Swarts said.
“These roles go well beyond income and jobs from forest production and the trade of renewable raw materials and foods.
“Forests also sustain families and communities, enhance agricultural productivity, and safeguard healthy watersheds.”
With many countries seeking to move toward a sustainable bioeconomy, the deputy minister stated that forest products offer nature-based solutions as replacements for carbon-intensive materials while generating new economic opportunities.
“Forests are indispensable for healthy economies – today and for future generations,” she said.
“Today we are hosting this event at the same time as the United Nations Headquarters, where they are observing the hashtag ForestDay.“
The deputy minister said the United Nations Forum on Forests Secretariat, in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, was hosting a panel discussion to explore how valuation, governance, and finance can better reflect forests’ full economic, social, and environmental contributions.
“We have sent our statement to the Permanent Mission of South Africa to the United Nations, which is based in New York, to deliver it on our behalf,” said Deputy Minister Swarts.
She said the role of forests in the economy cannot be ignored, given their impact on societies and their contribution to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) across the world, at a primary level.
Forests and trees provide many other benefits, such as:
- storm water control,
- minimising soil and wind erosion,
- windbreaks during stormy weather,
- Promotion of biodiversity and provision of recreational facilities when integrated into other landscapes, such as parks for communities.
Across Africa and other developing countries, forests provide livelihood goods and services such as firewood, fruits and nuts, and meat from faunal species.
Woodlands provide for people living in and around the forests.
A significant number of people across the world are involved in woodcarving and other wood-based ornamentals derived from woodland forests.
They provide a safety net for many communities, as they are the most accessible forest resource for poor communities.
The most prominent benefits include fuelwood for energy and water sterilisation through boiling, benefiting more than 12 million people.
They also provide medicinal plants for health care, with approximately 27 million people accessing products from them in this regard. Woodlands also provide fruits and other foods, wooden utensils, watershed protection, and carbon storage.
More than 800 000 people operate in the craft industry, which is heavily reliant on woodland resources, and up to 100 000 households in South Africa engage in small-scale trade in forest products from woodlands.
Due to their extent and vastness, woodlands are neither adequately managed nor protected.
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