17 June 2014, IISD news - The Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) released  the results of a three-year long study, which concludes that, if well managed,  artisanal logging in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) could sustain  thousands of livelihoods and contribute to sustainable forest management  (SFM).

The study reports that artisanal logging accounts for 13 times more  production than the industrial timber sector and employs about 25,000 people.  Furthermore, about 85% of artisanal timber is purchased on the domestic market – resulting in about US$100 million in sales.

According to the report, additional research is required to ensure that the  long-term artisanal logging sector is sustainable. Currently, however, the  perception of widespread corruption appears to be inaccurate as are the impacts  on forests, which are perceived to be negative when, in fact, artisanal logging  doesn't threaten the species harvested.

Similar studies were carried out on the domestic timber market in Cameroon,  Central African Republic, Ecuador, Gabon, Indonesia and the Republic of the  Congo CIFOR is part of the CGIAR consortium.

Source:  http://forests-l.iisd.org/news/cifor-counters-misconceptions-on-artisanal-logging-in-drc/