Implement charcoal ban in phases, says FDC
The FDC proposes that the government licenses charcoal burning from private woodlots, encourages fast-growing tree species like eucalyptus and acacia for charcoal, and regulates rather than ban.
The Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) party Vice Chairperson for Western Uganda, Centenary Robert Franco, addressing the media at FDC headquarters in Najjanankumbi, Kampala. (Photo by Isaac Nuwagaba)
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Opposition political party Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) has urged the government to implement the charcoal ban in phases instead of abrupt enforcement.
The party said that while it recognises the long-term necessity of environmental conservation, it is against the manner in which the ban is being enforced.
“Uganda must go green, yes. But it must go green responsibly, gradually, and with the people, not against them," said the party's vice-chairperson for western Uganda, Robert Franco Centenary on Monday at the FDC headquarters in Kampala.
He said the government should first provide "accessible and affordable" energy alternatives.
Presidential directive
The Uganda Police Force said it had intensified joint security operations to enforce President Yoweri Museveni's Executive Order No. 3 of 2023, which bans charcoal burning and commercial trade in targeted regions of the country: the north and east.
Already, the crackdown has led to hundreds of bags of charcoal being seized and a number of arrests made.
Police say the President's directive is intended to combat a high degree of deforestation and environmental degradation, as the government continues discussing potential formalisation and regulation of the trade.
With this in mind, the FDC suggests an aggressive nationwide tree planting campaign.
“As part of greening Uganda, the government, through the Ministry of Water and Environment, should offer free tree seedlings to Ugandans during the monthly Saturday cleaning day, to encourage Ugandans to plant trees and protect the vegetative cover,” said Centenary.
He said charcoal provides employment for an estimated 200,000 Ugandans along the value chain, from burners to transporters to vendors in Kampala, Wakiso and Mukono, and any abrupt ban without alternatives will push them into poverty and crime.
What can be done
The FDC proposes that the government licenses charcoal burning from private woodlots, encourages fast-growing tree species like eucalyptus and acacia for charcoal, and regulates rather than ban.
“Let government demarcate where charcoal can be produced sustainably, support communities to plant woodlots for charcoal, and tax it moderately to fund re-afforestation. That is how Rwanda and Kenya are managing it," added Centenary.
The party is also urging the government to fast-track rural electrification and reduce power tariffs for cooking from the current sh800 per unit to under sh400 to make electric pressure cookers viable.
The government is pushing for clean cooking. Under the Energy Policy 2023, the government talks of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), briquettes, and electric pressure cookers, and plans to tax charcoal more.
The ban has sparked public debate, with those opposing it saying gas refills, for instance, remain out of reach for low-income earners.
Last week, Speaker of Parliament Jacob Marksons Oboth directed a temporary halt to the enforcement of this ban pending a comprehensive ministerial statement.