Plantations, poverty and power - Critical Information Collective

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Swaziland’s main industries are sugar and forestry. Both require large areas of land. “They are a disaster
for a country like Swaziland, where there are still feudal social relations,” said Nhlanhla Msweli of the
Swaziland Campaign Against Poverty and Economic Inequality (SCAPEI) at a meeting in South Africa in
2003. 161 In a country where the majority of people are landless, industrial tree plantations cover almost 10
per cent of the land. 162
Since 1988, Sappi has owned a majority share in the Usutu Pulp Company. In 1982, negotiations to sell
Usutu to the South African pulp and paper company Mondi fell through. Six years later Sappi bought 50
per cent of the Usutu pulp company from Courtaulds and a further 30 per cent from CDC. The remaining
20 per cent is held by the Swaziland government.
In September 2001, Sappi threatened to close the Usutu pulp mill, unless it could find a way of reducing
costs by US$8.3 million within three months. In 2002, Sappi battled with the Swaziland Agricultural and
Plantation Workers’ Union about laying off 650 people from the pulp mill. Sappi’s then-executive
chairman Eugene van As told investors that Sappi came “fairly close” to closing down the pulp mill. “The
mill is highly competitive, but not with 650 people more than it needs,” van As said. 163
The town of Bhunya was built to house workers at the pulp mill. It is a one company town. As a resident
put it, “If SAPPI closes, this place is a ghost town tomorrow.” 164
When Sappi took over the firm, it employed 2,700 people. Today, Sappi Usutu has outsourced most of its
work. It now employs only 43 people directly. The company employs a further 1,400 people on a contract
basis. 165
A 2004 report by Wally Menne of the South African Timberwatch Coalition, based on interviews with
community members, environmentalists as well as government and industry representatives, documents
how industrial tree plantations have damaged ecosystems and caused loss of biodiversity. Menne explains
that plantations have been planted on the land with the most productive potential, at the expense of other
agricultural land uses. “The potential benefits of having allowed the area to remain as it was originally
could exceed those derived from the current use,” Menne notes. “Other agricultural land uses that might
otherwise have become established there could possibly have produced greater benefits for the people and
the natural environment of Swaziland.” 166
In July 2006, Sappi’s plantations in Swaziland were given the Forest Stewardship Council’s “green” label
161 Nhlanhla Msweli (2003) “Impacts of timber plantations on rural people of Swaziland”, Paper delivered at the
‘Timber Plantations: Impacts, Future Visions and Global Trends’ Conference, Nelspruit, November, 2003
162 Wally Menne (2004) “Timber Plantations in Swaziland: An investigation into the environmental and social impacts
of large-scale timber plantations in Swaziland”, Timberwatch Coalition and World Rainforest Movement, December 2004.
http://www.wrm.org.uy/countries/Swaziland/Plantations.pdf
163 “South Africa; Half Of Sappi Shares In The US”, Business Day, 29 January 2002.
164 James Hall (2000) “Swaziland: Some traditions harmful to the environment”, Interpress Service, 12 May 2000.
165 “Woodmark Forest Certification Public Report, Sappi Usutu”, Woodmark, Soil Association, July 2006.
http://www.organicweek.org/web/sa/saweb.nsf/librarytitles/22D0E.HTMl/$file/Usutu%20FM%20S1%20report%20FINAL
.xls
166 Wally Menne (2004) “Timber Plantations in Swaziland: An investigation into the environmental and social impacts
of large-scale timber plantations in Swaziland”, Timberwatch Coalition and World Rainforest Movement, December 2004,
page 24. http://www.wrm.org.uy/countries/Swaziland/Plantations.pdf