In an effort to preserve Africa’s ecosystems, the International Organization of Tropical Woods (OIBT) has begun focusing on developing the processing for alternative energies, said Executive Director Emmanuel Ze Meka.
African participants stressed the importance to tap wood in all its forms in order to provide vital sources of energy.
The executive director said it is time to "exceed the wood conversion rate in most African OITB countries, which is between 25 and 55 percent," Ze Mekas said.
Experts said the move is geared toward tapping and exploring all wood potentials, not only for preservation, but for alternative energies.