The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) remains a key destination for American hardwoods amidst the increasing demand within the region’s furniture, interiors and flooring sectors, according to the American Hardwood Export Council (AHEC), the leading international trade association for the American hardwood industry. In line with its aims to increase awareness in the region, AHEC is undertaking significant strives to underline the primary benefits of U.S. hardwoods, which are well reputed for their wide range of species and suitability to address calls for sustainability and standardised grading for increased transparency and assurance, among regional customers.
Despite the widespread effects of the global recession, the MENA region continues to pose significant demand for American hardwoods, with exports reaching an estimated USD 69.3 million last year. In addition, U.S. hardwoods have been specified for a significant number of high profile projects in the region, the most well known of which include Burj Al Arab, Jumeirah Beach Hotel, Emirates Towers, Grand Hyatt Dubai, Bar Al Jissa Muscat, Dubai Mall, Mall of the Emirates, Ibn Battuta, and the newly opened Burj Khalifa. Leading architects and designers, as well as high end turnkey contractors and manufacturers of flooring and furniture in the Gulf have also developed a strong appreciation of the potential offered by American hardwood, which signify further growth prospects for the product in the region.
“The MENA region’s continuous need for high quality wood products for its interiors and furniture industries creates widespread opportunity for us assist in the growth of U.S. hardwood exports to the region,” said Roderick Wiles, Emerging Markets Director, AHEC. “Amidst increasing calls for sustainability, we remain committed to addressing the long term demands of the region and will continue to strive to play a key role in providing stakeholders with valuable environmental assurances and technical information that can help them use American hardwoods to their greatest potential.”
American hardwood has seen a significant increase in demand, not only in Dubai, which has developed into a wood processing hub, but also in Abu Dhabi, territories across the entire Gulf as well as Iran, East Africa and Pakistan. Notably, hardwoods from the U.S. have also seen widespread popularity in Egypt, where sawn timber and veneer are used in all kinds of construction projects as well as for the manufacturing of flooring and furniture - much of which is exported back to the U.S. and to Europe. In addition to the burgeoning need for U.S. hardwoods for projects being built in the region, many projects outside the Middle East are being supplied with American hardwoods by interior contractors from the Gulf, which further reiterates the importance of the region.
“We are looking forward to collaborating with potential industry partners who can boost our efforts to expand the market for hardwoods from the United States. We are confident that our increased activities within the region will build awareness on the advantages of using American hardwoods, not only in terms of quality but also amidst the widespread demand for proof of sustainability,” concluded Wiles.
