On January 28, a five-year Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed between the Ministry of Water and Environment and Kijani Forestry, a non-governmental organization (NGO), to champion the planting of trees to sustain charcoal production in Northern Uganda.
The MOU, which was signed in Gulu City, will see the Ministry collaborating with Kijani Forestry for the development of forestry and biomass conservation activities.
This development comes against the backdrop of a decline in the natural forest cover in the region owing to commercial charcoal production and timber.
According to Alfred Okot Okidi, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Water and Environment, the partnership will enable the government to work together with the private sector to raise trees specifically for biomass.
“It’s a very bold step that involves government and the private sector, and it’s in an area of sustainable development and trade in charcoal. This MOU will enable us to collaborate with the private sector, which will specifically plant trees for biomass. They will be processed in an environmentally friendly manner, and the yield is going to be much better,” he said.
Okidi stated that irresponsible harvesting of natural trees and illegal commercial charcoal production continue to be a major threat to the environment, and that the MOU will aid in addressing the issue by directly engaging with the private sector.
He says the development will also help in the elimination of the middlemen who are profiting from the charcoal trade in the region.
Quinn Neely, the co-founder and chief executive officer of Kinaji Forestry, said that they are currently working with 300 different farmer groups in Gulu district to plant trees for charcoal production and timber.
He says the organization is distributing 10 tree species, primarily indigenous trees that are fast-maturing and produce quality charcoal, to the farmers.
They include Terminalia glaucescent, Terminalia, Alizia lebeck (Owak), Acacia polycantha, Melia volkensii, and Senna siamea, among others.
Neely notes that the organization seeks to see increased forest cover and provide an economic opportunity for the farmers in the region, whose livelihoods continue to be affected by the impacts of climate change.
The goal is to plant 20 million trees in the region this year, with a target of more than 100 million trees in the next five years.