GOVERNMENT has said that it is losing billions of Kwacha in revenue every year through illegal cutting and selling of timber by unscrupulous millers and traders.

Tourism Minister Patrick Kalifungwa said yesterday that he was aware the practice that was rampant across the country and that his ministry was unable to curb the crime because of limited manpower.

The minister said this when he appeared before the House of Chiefs, in response to a question asked by Chief Mubanga of Northern Province who wanted to know if the minister was aware of the rampant vice, which was costing Zambia a lot of money.

The Chief said some local people in Northern Province had teamed up with foreigners from Tanzania and were illegally cutting the timber and sawing it before they transported it to Tanzania.

He said that he had tried to use his limited powers as a chief to curb the vice but was being frustrated by the limited authority vested in him and appealed to the minister to have a clause inserted in the Act that would empower the chief to take appropriate action against people identified to be engaging in deforestation.

Mr Kalifungwa said the ministry was in the process of establishing a Forestry Management Commission which he hoped would start operating by mid next year.

He said that the commission would be a semi-autonomous body charged with several responsibilities that would include controlling, managing, conserving and administering national and local forests.

The minister also said currently 29 saw milling licences and 45 pit-sawing licences had been issued countrywide.

He also told the chiefs that safari-hunting operations brought foreign exchange into the country through payments made by foreign clients and should therefore be encouraged.

Earlier, Chief Chipepo of Gwembe told the minister that there was an urgent need to tar the road between Gwembe and Chipepo if tourists and investors were to be enticed to invest in the area.

He said that it would be difficult to attract investors if there was no infrastructure set up in the area and the road was very important for that purpose.

Chief Chitambo of Serenje complained about the lack of commitment from Government in taking care of national monuments which he said were potential tourist attractions.

He said that he had been using his own money to maintain the place where the heart of David Livingstone was buried in his village.

Chiefs Kabinga and Munyumbwe complained about the lack of compensation for people who were either attacked by or lost their property to the activities of wild animals.