The writer is the public relations manager of the National Forestry Authority
Jul 02, 2009
THE ice cover on Mt. Rwenzori is vanishing. Rivers Mubuku and Rwizi are drying up. Lakes Wamala and Bunyonyi are heavily silted. Famine is ravaging Karamoja as cattle die due to lack of water and pasture.
By Moses Watasa
THE ice cover on Mt. Rwenzori is vanishing. Rivers Mubuku and Rwizi are drying up. Lakes Wamala and Bunyonyi are heavily silted. Famine is ravaging Karamoja as cattle die due to lack of water and pasture.
The Balaalo keep trekking in search of water and pasture. Crop yields are falling due to erratic rains as food prices surge like never before.
These and other media reports cast an ominous outlook to Uganda’s environment.
A report, “Uganda Atlas of our changing Environment,†issued by the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) offers an insight into this grim reality.
The report highlights deforestation as a main concern and illustrates total depletion of forests in some districts in Uganda.
Deforestation is responsible for at least 20% of greenhouse gases and an unprecedented surge in temperatures which has dire effects on our livelihood.
The National Forestry Authority (NFA) established in 2007 that annually, 80,000ha of forest cover is lost in Uganda. 73,000ha are lost to rapid clearance of private and community forests while 7,000ha is lost in forest reserves.
In private and community forests, there is unsustainable cutting of trees for timber and fuel wood. In forest reserves, there is increasing encroachment and illegal activities, like clearing trees for settlement, farming, charcoal burning and timber-logging.
This human activity has caused severe degradation in some forest reserves. In the south-Busoga forest in Mayuge, hostile encroachers currently occupy 14,000 of the 16,000-hectare reserve. A brawl between two gangs of encroachers over the “ownership†of the reserve left three people dead on January 27. Countrywide, the number of encroachers swelled from 80,000 to 300,000, especially after a 2006 executive order halting eviction.
With environmental forecasts of disaster in four decades, there is urgent need to address encroachment and promote tree planting. NFA plants 5,000 hectares annually although such efforts are sometimes hampered by encroachers who clear planted areas.
Although forest cover and Uganda’s economy face uncertainty, there is still hope. An appeal by NFA for support towards tree planting in Uganda is beginning to bear fruit. World Vision is on board and targets to plant 13 million trees in 47 districts.
MTN-Uganda has joined NFA to plant trees in Entebbe, Jinja and Mbale and has committed resources to cover 20 hectares by December 2009. When NFA was planting with MTN, there was enthusiastic participation of local leaders, communities and the UPDF.
In April 2009, a crowd turned up in Butaleja district to plant trees with NFA and Miss Uganda Dora Mwima. This illustrates that with resources, there is goodwill towards tree-planting.
The Government’s move to gazette national tree planting days March 8, March 21, May 1 and August 12 is commendable.
However, to realise a desirable annual acreage planted, the Government can do more. For instance, the National Tree Fund provided for under the National Forestry and Tree Planting Act, 2003 should be facilitated and operationalised.
When launching the MTN-NFA planting drive, state minister for environment Jessica Eriyo said Lake Chad in Central Africa has dried up.
Eriyo said Lake Victoria is receding and she proposed mass-tree planting and vigilant forest conservation. We should heed her call.
The writer is the public relations manager of the National Forestry Authority
THE ice cover on Mt. Rwenzori is vanishing. Rivers Mubuku and Rwizi are drying up. Lakes Wamala and Bunyonyi are heavily silted. Famine is ravaging Karamoja as cattle die due to lack of water and pasture.
The Balaalo keep trekking in search of water and pasture. Crop yields are falling due to erratic rains as food prices surge like never before.
These and other media reports cast an ominous outlook to Uganda’s environment.
A report, “Uganda Atlas of our changing Environment,†issued by the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) offers an insight into this grim reality.
The report highlights deforestation as a main concern and illustrates total depletion of forests in some districts in Uganda.
Deforestation is responsible for at least 20% of greenhouse gases and an unprecedented surge in temperatures which has dire effects on our livelihood.
The National Forestry Authority (NFA) established in 2007 that annually, 80,000ha of forest cover is lost in Uganda. 73,000ha are lost to rapid clearance of private and community forests while 7,000ha is lost in forest reserves.
In private and community forests, there is unsustainable cutting of trees for timber and fuel wood. In forest reserves, there is increasing encroachment and illegal activities, like clearing trees for settlement, farming, charcoal burning and timber-logging.
This human activity has caused severe degradation in some forest reserves. In the south-Busoga forest in Mayuge, hostile encroachers currently occupy 14,000 of the 16,000-hectare reserve. A brawl between two gangs of encroachers over the “ownership†of the reserve left three people dead on January 27. Countrywide, the number of encroachers swelled from 80,000 to 300,000, especially after a 2006 executive order halting eviction.
With environmental forecasts of disaster in four decades, there is urgent need to address encroachment and promote tree planting. NFA plants 5,000 hectares annually although such efforts are sometimes hampered by encroachers who clear planted areas.
Although forest cover and Uganda’s economy face uncertainty, there is still hope. An appeal by NFA for support towards tree planting in Uganda is beginning to bear fruit. World Vision is on board and targets to plant 13 million trees in 47 districts.
MTN-Uganda has joined NFA to plant trees in Entebbe, Jinja and Mbale and has committed resources to cover 20 hectares by December 2009. When NFA was planting with MTN, there was enthusiastic participation of local leaders, communities and the UPDF.
In April 2009, a crowd turned up in Butaleja district to plant trees with NFA and Miss Uganda Dora Mwima. This illustrates that with resources, there is goodwill towards tree-planting.
The Government’s move to gazette national tree planting days March 8, March 21, May 1 and August 12 is commendable.
However, to realise a desirable annual acreage planted, the Government can do more. For instance, the National Tree Fund provided for under the National Forestry and Tree Planting Act, 2003 should be facilitated and operationalised.
When launching the MTN-NFA planting drive, state minister for environment Jessica Eriyo said Lake Chad in Central Africa has dried up.
Eriyo said Lake Victoria is receding and she proposed mass-tree planting and vigilant forest conservation. We should heed her call.
The writer is the public relations manager of the National Forestry Authority