Hardwood logging on Manus Island has not delivered promised local benefits, report finds

Global Witness says the Malaysian company Maxland has failed to plant millions of rubber trees

A Malaysian company that won a permit to clear tropical rainforest on Manus Island has been accused of failing to deliver on its promises to the local community, while reaping millions of dollars in profits from the logging of valuable hardwood timber.

According to licensing documents, the company, Maxland Ltd, secured a permit to clear land in the south of Papua New Guinea's Manus Island in order to plant between three and five million rubber trees as part of the Pohowa Project. The project's stated aim in documents was to benefit smallholder rubber farmers [and] the surrounding communities".