The trade of charcoal, which accelerates deforestation in Uganda, prompted authorities to issue an executive order to ban cutting trees for commercial charcoal. With the executive order being delayed, the State minister for Northern Uganda ordered to donate seized charcoal to schools.
State Minister for Northern Uganda, Grace Freedom Kwiyucwiny, on October 7th, directed the National Forest Authority (NFA) to distribute impounded charcoal to schools and education facilities.
In May earlier this year, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni issued an executive order that banned tree cutting for commercial charcoal purposes and the illegal export of timber. The President faulted the corrupt elements in security and officials in charge of the environment and the NFA for allegedly aiding the rising charcoal trade.
But the implementation of the executive order has been delayed to October 20th.
After the FNA found and seized 5,000 sacks of charcoal near the Aswa River, it suggested that they be put up for auction. The auction could have brought revenue but the executive order does not call for public auctions for local government revenue.
Moreover, local leaders reacted to the NFA’s idea to auction the charcoal, considering it would mean that the executive order from the President is being dodged.
The NFA said it initially wanted to give the charcoal to schools and institutions across different regions but the Gulu Magistrate Court blocked the move. And John Gilbo, the manager of NFA Aswa River Range, said that they were awaiting some clarifications and updates in the NFA head offices in Kampala, Uganda’s capital city, before they do anything with the charcoal.
In the end, Minister Kwiyucwiny ordered the distribution of the seized charcoal to schools and educational institutions.
Forest covered 19% of Uganda in 2000 but only 12% in 2015
In Uganda, charcoal, which is made from dry wood burned in a pit dug in the ground and sealed to avoid oxygen, and firewood are regularly used as energy.
Approximately 90% of households derive their energy from charcoal — for urban households — and firewood — for rural households — mostly for domestic cooking. Institutions such as schools, prisons, hospitals, and the army also use largely wood fuel.
And demand for wood fuel is growing, by 9% between 2015 and 2019, according to a World Bank Uganda wood review report from 2019.
It is one of the factors driving forest loss and degradation in Uganda, along with agricultural expansion and the need for more lands, increased urbanization and wildfires.
The World Bank in 2020 also reported that the total net loss of Uganda’s forests between 2000 and 2015 was estimated at 1.8 million hectares, making an average annual loss rate of 4%.
According to the Global Forest Watch, Uganda has lost 1.03 million hectares of tree cover, equivalent to 13% between 2000 and 2022. In the last 100 years (1921−2021), Uganda has lost 42% of its forest covers, Illuminem, an information and data platform on sustainability, reported.
Police and law enforcement have been criticized for not doing enough to stop illegal wood fuel trading.
