In the next year, the Forest Department plans some 34,000 hectaresacres) in plantations, with nearly one quarter of that land to grow prized teak hardwood, a key export in this impoverished nation, the semi-official weekly said.

"Planting economic varieties is essential because forestry accounts for about 30 percent of the nation's export earnings," Thein Myint, assistant director of the natural forest and plantation division, told the paper.

Myanmar's military rulers plan to create more than 323,000 hectares of teak plantations over the next 40 years, the paper said.

In this tightly regulated economy, about 15 private companies will be allowed to plant 2,800 hectares of teak, Khin Maung Nyunt of the planning and statistics division told the Times.

Private firms have been allowed to grow teak and other timber since 2000. The companies have a 30-year tenure on the land, and must give 25 percent of their profits to the government.

The new plantations should yield small amounts of teak after five years, and go into full production in 20 years, Khin Maung Nyunt said.

The military government also plans to plant 8,900 hectares of forests near dams and reservoirs to help maintain water supplies, Thein Myint told the paper.

The officials said illegal logging, shifting cultivation, fires and development projects have contributed to deforestation in Myanmar.

The country has come under criticism from forestry monitor Global Witness, which has reported that Myanmar's forests are being ravaged by logging fueled by voracious demand in China.

Government figures on teak exports are far smaller than the amount of teak importers say they have bought, but the forest department projected timber exports at about 300 million dollars for the current fiscal year, the weekly reported.