VP warns on desert formation
Oct 26, 2004
THE Vice-President, Prof. Gilbert Bukenya, has said the country faces desertification if the unsustainable use of nature is not curbed by grassroots efforts.
By Gerald Tenywa
THE Vice-President, Prof. Gilbert Bukenya, has said the country faces desertification if the unsustainable use of nature is not curbed by grassroots efforts.
He blamed poverty for the wanton destruction of nature, because the communities rely on exploitation of forests and wetlands for survival.
Bukenya was yesterday speaking at the opening of a meeting convened by the Small Grants Programme (SGP) of the Global Environment Facility (GEF), undertaken by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
The week-long workshop has attracted officials from 10 countries in east and southern Africa, and Dr. Delfin Ganapin, GEF SGP Global manager.
GEF is a funding mechanism which began about a decade ago. NGOs and Community-based Organisations in developing countries benefit from it to conserve biological diversity, mitigate climate change and protect international waters.
Daouda Toure, the UN resident coordinator, said the environment and development complemented each other, but had been misunderstood.
THE Vice-President, Prof. Gilbert Bukenya, has said the country faces desertification if the unsustainable use of nature is not curbed by grassroots efforts.
He blamed poverty for the wanton destruction of nature, because the communities rely on exploitation of forests and wetlands for survival.
Bukenya was yesterday speaking at the opening of a meeting convened by the Small Grants Programme (SGP) of the Global Environment Facility (GEF), undertaken by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
The week-long workshop has attracted officials from 10 countries in east and southern Africa, and Dr. Delfin Ganapin, GEF SGP Global manager.
GEF is a funding mechanism which began about a decade ago. NGOs and Community-based Organisations in developing countries benefit from it to conserve biological diversity, mitigate climate change and protect international waters.
Daouda Toure, the UN resident coordinator, said the environment and development complemented each other, but had been misunderstood.