Forestry in Uganda

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Today, forest and woodland cover in Uganda stands at 49,000 km2 or 24% of the total land area. Of these 9,242.08 km2 is

central forest reserves.[1]

History

In the late 1980s, 75,000 square kilometres of land in

wood pulp, and paper.[2]

Other important products included leaves for

medicinal herbs, fruits, and fibers, and a variety of grasses used in weaving and household applications. Production of most materials increased as much as 100 percent between 1980 and 1988. The output of timber for construction declined from 1980 to 1985, before increasing slightly to 433 million units in 1987 and continuing to increase in 1988. Paper production also increased substantially in 1988.[2]

Piles of chopped dry ecalyptus wood in near Igara Secondary school near Butare town in Bushenyi district in Western Uganda
Piles of chopped dry ecalyptus wood in near Igara Secondary school near Butare town in Bushenyi district in Western Uganda

Nationwide forest resources were being[

wildfires, often the result of illegal moonshine-making activity in reserves. Neither natural regrowth nor tree-planting projects could keep pace with the demand for forest products.[2]

In 1988 the Ministry of Environmental Protection was responsible for implementing forest policy and management. Ministry officials warned that the loss of productive woodlands would eventually lead to land erosion,

food shortages, and rural poverty in general, and they hoped to change traditional attitudes toward forests and other natural resources.[2]

In 1989 the government implemented a six-year forestry rehabilitation project financed by the

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). This project included a nationwide tree-planting campaign and a series of three-year training courses for rural extension agents, leaders of women's groups, educators, and farmers. Britain, the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany), and several multilateral donor agencies also provided assistance in the forestry sector.[2]

Piles of chopped dry ecalyptus wood in near Butare town in Bushenyi district in Western Uganda
Piles of chopped dry ecalyptus wood in near Butare town in Bushenyi district in Western Uganda

Economic crises often hampered efforts to conserve natural resources. Many people lacked the motivation to plan for future generations when their own survival was at risk. As a result, illegal activities, including logging, charcoal making, and firewood gathering in posted reserves contributed to rapid deforestation. Government forestry agents, who were generally underpaid, sometimes sold firewood for their own profit or permitted illegal activities in return for

bribes. In these ways, entrenched poverty and corruption drained public resources from use by present and future generations. In 1989 officials threatened to prosecute trespassers in posted forest areas, but by the end of the year, it had not implemented this policy.[2]

2000s

To revive forestry the government abolished the Forest Department and established the National Forestry Authority (Uganda)(NFA) in 2004. The aim of this action was to increase revenue and quality of the forest management. In the financial year of 2004/2005, the first year after the took over from the Forest Department, the NFA increased the revenue from forest products to USh 5,400,000,000/= or US$2,160,000 from previous year's 1,200,000,000/= or US$480,000 due open puplic tendering of 80.000m³ of timber. Total area of planted trees by the NFA stand at 12 km2 in the same year.[1]

The areas under Management of the NFA are gazetted to 506

Central Forest Reserves
.

Lists of protected areas

References

  1. ^ a b "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-09-06. Retrieved 2013-11-07.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  2. ^ a b c d e f Uganda country study. Library of Congress Federal Research Division (December 1990). Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Forestry_in_Uganda&oldid=1216442466"