Madagascar defends plan to audit, sell its precious wood [The Morning Call]

Madagascar has defended its project of auditing and selling its stocks of precious wood. Known for its precious rosewood trees, the country’s officials gave its argument at the 70th Standing Committee’s meeting of CITES (convention on International Trade in Endangered Wild Fauna and Flora Species).

Rich in biodiversity, the rainforests of Atsinanana, a UNESCO World Heritage site, is believed to shelter some of the world’s most intact forests and unique ecosystems. But this property is placed on the list of sites in danger of UNESCO, as illegal mining, lemur poaching, and the illegal overexploitation of precious wood impact it.