Namibia has become the first African country to host the Wood Identification and Screening Centre (WISC).
The forensic facility launched by the Minister of Home Affairs, Immigration, Safety and Security (MHAISS) Lucia Iipumbu will strengthen timber verification and law enforcement in the country.
As a Southern African transit country for legal and illegal consignments of timber, Namibia saw the need to establish the centre.
WISC equips technicians with advanced technology to detect illegal logging, verify species declarations, and support prosecution of timber-related crimes.
The technology will help prevent illicit wood from entering international supply chains, address the illegal timber trade as a significant national security and environmental threat, and join the global network of WISC facilities.
"Illegal timber trade is not just a regulatory interaction. It is a crime that needs attention. It undermines the lawful commerce. It weakens the state authority and threatens power diversity. That's why we as a government must treat such threats with a seriousness that they deserve. Our flora and fauna must be protected, even if it means setting an example by prosecuting offenders," says Minister Iipumbu.
Funded by the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, the facility is hosted at the Namibia Police Forensic Science Institute in partnership with the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism, NamRA, and the United States Forest Service International Programs and Trade.
Lieutenant General Joseph Shikongo heads NamPol.
"This support will be significantly enhanced by efforts to combat green activities and ensure proper revenue corrections in the media. Where is the revenue collection? It's done. So particularly concerning timber smuggling and exports that might fraudulently misrepresent it in documentation and the point of endearing."
United States Ambassador to Namibia, John Giordano, adds, "Partnering with Namibia to strengthen its law enforcement capacity will disrupt criminal enterprises that threaten stability across the region, the United States, and around the world. Protecting natural resources not only makes us safer, but it is also directly linked to economic security. Namibia's conservation and resource space is a strategic asset. Protecting it protects tourism, investment, and long-term growth."
Each wood species has a distinctive chemical composition that produces a diagnostic spectrum often described as a chemical fingerprint.
These unique spectra can be used to classify unknown wood samples through comparison against a spectral database made up of tree species from around the world.
Namibian experts are collecting samples from commonly traded timber species to expand and strengthen the database.