An expected boom in the Eastern Cape's timber and forestry industry is set to create thousands of direct jobs within the province, Trade and Industry Minister Mandisi Mpahlwa said yesterday.

Speaking at a Timber and Forestry summit in Mthatha, Mpahlwa predicted that some 26000 jobs would be created at plantation level, while another 1700 jobs would be created within the processing sector after the industry took flight in the province.

Mpahlwa also said his department, together with the provincial Department of Economic Affairs and Tourism, the Eastern Cape Development Corporation and other partners, including the United Nations's Industry Development Organisation were reviving a business plan to establish a furniture industry in Mthatha.

"The forestry sector and its processing industries is one of the few sectors in the province that offered the best opportunity to address the challenges of unemployment and poverty," the minister said.

Mpahlwa, however, did not give set time-frames for the industry to get off the ground.

Mpahlwa also warned that challenges in the province, such as poor infrastructure and ensuring the long-term reliability of raw material supply, need to be addressed.

Economist Mike Schussler yesterday said the timber and forestry sector was one of the "roots for the Eastern Cape to grow bigger and better".

Schussler, however, warned that the industry was a "long-term investment".

Daily Dispatch