CLIMATE | ENVIRONMENT | DR BATTE

There is more than enough to tell that organisers were impressed with the turn-up at the 2nd edition of the Tree Adoption Uganda’s Run4Climate marathon on Sunday.

Hundreds of participants, like it was in the first edition were already set at dawn for the different events in 10km and 5km at Makerere University rugby grounds.

In a bid to create awareness about the adverse effects of climate change and increase Uganda’s forest cover, Tree Adoption Uganda held the marathon under the theme “Protect, Restore and Conserve” intending to raise funds to grow 100,000 trees and restore 200 acres of degraded land across the country.

“We are spearheading a multisectoral approach for climate action to restore Uganda’s forest cover. Restoration is needed because Uganda has lost more than half of its forest cover since 1990, meaning that we do not have sufficient sinks for the carbon that pollutes the atmosphere leading to global warming,” Dr. Charles Batte, the Chief Executive Officer, noted.

Dr Batte noted that the Country is experiencing catastrophes like unpredictable weather patterns, landslides, droughts and torrential rainfall affecting agriculture and leading to food insecurity.

“It is each and everyone’s responsibility to ensure our landscapes are restored and the forests are restored to play their ecosystem functions,” Dr Batte said.

According to the National Forestry Authority, the country is currently losing an average of 122,000 hectares of forest cover annually.

“In 1990, we had 24% of the total land coverage of Uganda under forests; it decreased to around 9% by 2013. 

We have slightly recovered increasing from 9% to 12.4% at the end of 2020. We hope to get to 24% of forest cover by Vision 2040,” Issa Katwesigye, the assistant commissioner Forestry Department, noted.

The trees grown will be tracked and mapped using the Tree adoption mobile phone technology and satellite imagery by species, planter and GPS code in order to improve transparency and monitoring.

In 2020, the organization held its 1st edition of the Run4Climate and contributed to the planting and growing of 30,000 trees in communities in climate-ravaged areas of Bududa.

The 10km race was won by Otim Emmanuel while the 5Km was won by Amadile Majip. A forest of 2,000 and 1,000 trees respectively will be planted in their names in honour of their win.