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17th International Multidisciplinary Scientific GeoConference SGEM
2017, www.sgemviennagreen.org, SGEM2017 Vienna GREEN Conference
Proceedings, ISBN 978-619-7408-27-0 / ISSN 1314-2704, 27 - 29 November, 2017,
Vol. 17, Issue 33, 521-528 pp; DOI: 10.5593/sgem2017H/33/S14.065
FIREWOOD AND CHARCOAL PRODUCTION IN UGANDA
Mgr. Ing. Bamwesigye Dastan1, 2
Dr. Ing. Darkwah Samuel Antwi1
Dr. Ing. Hlavackova Petra2
Doc. Ing. Kupcak Vaclav 2
1 Faculty of Regional Development and International Studies,
2 Department of Forest and Wood Products Economics and Policy, Mendel University in Brno,
Zemedelska 1, 613 00 Brno.
Czech Republic.
xbamwesi@mendelu.cz
ABSTRACT
In particular, Sub-Sahara Africa and Uganda’s energy sector is dominated by biomass,
which contributes over 90% of the total expendable energy. Herein firewood and
charcoal contribute more than 85%. The main use of biomass energy is cooking and or
heating either as firewood or charcoal majorly by local households. There is also huge
demand from commercial activities such as the production of bricks and some factories.
In many areas, biomass continues to be the energy source of choice due to unavailability
or unaffordable prices of other alternatives like gas and electricity. This investigation
explores the forest wood biomass in Uganda and examines the functions, value and
trend. This study employs mutually quantitative and qualitative approaches to analyze
the production value of charcoal. A descriptive statistical analysis of wood charcoal
production was done to study the trend. Findings indicate that the value of the item has
been increasing positively by over 10% to 31% over time. Ceteris paribus, energy is
fundamental to sustainable development and poverty reduction efforts and it affects all
traits of development i.e. social, economic, and environmental. Therefore, the
Government of Uganda not only needs to enforce existing policies, but also implement
new ones that suit all development aspects including innovation such as usage of
Improved Eco-Stoves.
Key Words: Production trend, deforestation, household energy, innovation
INTRODUCTION
Uganda is one of the nations blessed with vast natural forests that offer biodiversity and
multiple economical and socio-cultural services [3] [7].
Further studies advance alternatives of attaching value to such forest uses in terms of
production and or damages caused in form of deforestation or deforested area [8] [11],
as well as expounding on the socioeconomic and environmental issues related to
forestry production.
17th International Multidisciplinary Scientific GeoConference SGEM 2017
Sub-Sahara Africa (SSA), like other regions in Africa, heavily depends on biomass for
energy, and so does Uganda. The country’s energy environment is subjugated by
biomass based energy sources contributing close to 95% of the total primary energy for
domestic consumption. Electricity and petroleum products account for 4% and 1%
respectively [1]. They argued that energy is fundamental to sustainable development
and poverty reduction determinations. It touches all aspects of human advances such as
social, economic, and environmental aspects including access to water, agricultural
productivity, population levels, and gender-related issues. None of the Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs) can be met without major improvement in the quality and
quantity of energy services in developing countries. They equally noted that Uganda has
lengthy ways to go in achieving a sustainable energy for everyone and achieving the
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) target by 2030, as was put forward by the
Initiative of the United Nations (SE4ALL). Their study showed that the country ought
to develop and harness renewable energy potential to meet the country’s energy needs.
Although the country has its objectives in the Energy and Renewable Energy policies
set as “to meet the energy needs of Uganda’s population for socioeconomic
development and environmental sustainability, there is still an increase in the use of
forest wood and charcoal by the majority of households and some processing industries.
Majority of households in Uganda rely on wood products i.e. firewood and charcoal for
daily domestic cooking and also projects such as brick laying and tea factories.
Numerous studies argue that firewood and charcoal production are the reason for
increased deforestation followed by other land use such as agriculture and settlement. It
is evident in the rural areas of Uganda that all households use firewood and or charcoal
for cooking their meals, and boiling water for family use. Charcoal is also used by both
rural, semi-urban and urban source of energy for cooking and other domestic or
commercial importance [13].
The charcoal burning business remains one other lucrative trade in Uganda [2]. The
process begins from cutting down the trees into logs, burning, transportation and
distribution, as well as whole sale and retail trading. This makes a livelihood for vast of
Ugandan households with majority being single mothers or women who must feed their
children and also send them to school [12].
This paper aims at showing the trend in the forest function and value focusing on
charcoal and firewood production and utilization in Uganda. The study further identifies
challenges and opportunities threatening the sustainability of such importance not only
in the country but also the continent and the globe. Our study sets conclusions and
recommendations to be used for policy decision making but also for further research on
forestry functions of firewood and charcoal in Sub-Sahara Africa and Uganda for
sustainable development.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Uganda is a landlocked country situated in East Africa region and is symbolized as the
pearl of Africa due to her nature. It shares her boundaries with South Sudan to the
North, Kenya to the East, Rwanda to the Southwest, The Democratic Republic of Congo
(DRC) to the West, and finally Tanzania to the South. This country was purposively
selected due to its dependence on wood production at household level and its impact on
sustainable development.
The country’s forest cover standpoint is approximately 5 million hectares (ha), which is
estimated at 24% of the country’s total land area. This area consists of both natural
17th International Multidisciplinary Scientific GeoConference SGEM
2017, www.sgemviennagreen.org, SGEM2017 Vienna GREEN Conference
Proceedings, ISBN 978-619-7408-27-0 / ISSN 1314-2704, 27 - 29 November, 2017,
Vol. 17, Issue 33, 521-528 pp; DOI: 10.5593/sgem2017H/33/S14.065
forests and man-made plantations. The natural forests comprise of mutually tropical
high forests and additional naturally wood-land. Tropical forests cover 924,000 hectares
(5% of Uganda’s land zone) whereas supplementary woodlands cover 3,974,102, which
accounts for about 19% spread throughout the country.
Our investigation obtained much of information from scientific sources, as well as
secondary data from the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) [6].
A mixture of qualitative and quantitative approaches was applied to study the data [5].
Quantitative data was subjected to descriptive statistical analysis. Also various
photographs ranging from forest cutting, charcoal burning, trade and firewood from
Uganda were obtained and studied to show case the situation and reality about firewood
and charcoal.
Using the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) data, we calculated the percent
change to check the rate of increase as per various studies suggested[6].
% ∆ CP= [((P2-P1) / (P1)]*100 ……………………………………. (1)
Herein below,
CP, represents charcoal production
% ∆, represents percentage change
P2, represents current production
P1, represents previous production
The percent change helps to understand the rate at which charcoal production has been
increasing and will be applied at a five year rate.
FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION
Papers General findings indicate that the natural forest until 1990, stood at
approximately 5 million hectares, however, by end of the year 2005, this had reduced to
3.5 million hectares.
Table 1 bellow, indicates that the rate of charcoal production has been increasing at a
high rate which is over 10% hence demonstrating and increase in the production. This
implies that the percent change or increase average is 16.5% (Table 1).
17th International Multidisciplinary Scientific GeoConference SGEM 2017
Table 1 Change in percentage change of charcoal production over 50 years (1961–
2015)
FAO 2017: own analysis
Figure 1 below shows there is a drastic increase in charcoal production, which is among
the chief reasons for the reduction in forested area.
Figure 1 below represents the production value and trend of wood charcoal (tonnes)
which forms the forest wood function of socioeconomic value. Also this increase in
wood fuel production leads to an ecological damage value due to deforestation as
witnessed in figure 2 photographs A, B, C and D.
Figure 1 Wood charcoal production trend in Uganda over 50 years (1961–2017)
FAO 2017: own analysis.
Numerous studies discuss and show case the dependence and the socio-economic value
of firewood and charcoal in Uganda and the rest of the Sub Sahara African region [9]
[10]. However, these studies did not emphasize the ecological function of the forest and
or propose any approaches for sustainability in the use of these resources.
Year
Value
(Tonnes)
Percentage change (%)
1961
187160
11
1965
208292
31
1970
272269
24
1975
338733
12
1980
448283
24
1985
507627
10
1990
560789
15
1995
642806
11
2000
713381
14
2005
813508
15
2010
931466
14
17th International Multidisciplinary Scientific GeoConference SGEM
2017, www.sgemviennagreen.org, SGEM2017 Vienna GREEN Conference
Proceedings, ISBN 978-619-7408-27-0 / ISSN 1314-2704, 27 - 29 November, 2017,
Vol. 17, Issue 33, 521-528 pp; DOI: 10.5593/sgem2017H/33/S14.065
Although many scholars concentrate on the economic characteristics of wood
production, a handful, considered ecological and or environmental aspects of
sustainable utilization of the forest wood resource as opposed to other studies who only
concentrated on socioeconomic element of livelihood, income and poverty [4].
Figure 2A shows forest cut down, and the damage it causes to the environment even
though, it gives other values of production and money. C shows the preparation for
charcoal burning in a pile, which is then covered to reduce the oxygen so that the logs
do not burn completely hence producing charcoal and this is done locally without and
modern technology. Most parts of the country have suffered such leaving bare land
scape which herein is qualified as damage value.
B illustrates firewood ready for cooking at a given home, while D, shows charcoal
parked in sacks ready for transportation to the market and or sale while at the burning
venue. The message is that there exists the non-documented value of wood value both
from natural and plantation forests which are cut down and piles of wood await daily
cooking at many homes across the rural homesteads.
Forests in Uganda provide numerous functions not limited to biodiversity and
ecological, economic, and social-cultural use. Our study found out the production value
of forest wood that offers many households a daily livelihood for their domestic energy
as firewood and charcoal, which has drastically increased over the decades.
17th International Multidisciplinary Scientific GeoConference SGEM 2017
Figure 2 Showcases of firewood and charcoal production
This hyper increase is attributed to rapid increase in the population of Uganda in the
recent decades which has more than doubled.
CONCLUSION
The production trend of charcoal has been increasing and so is the value. There is also
an equivalent value which is negative, referred to as deforestation which has
subsequently led to change in climate such as pro-longed droughts, and changes in rain
patterns, failure in agriculture, migration and or starvation of some forest species of
animals and birds. This value needs to be fully quantified in all forms of measurement
such as money and or damage value.
We recommend that:
Further research is need to quantify the damage value but also the monetary value of
fire wood at domestic level which is non-documented but yet the major problem.
A) Trees cut down: https://goo.gl/7sp1pJ
B) Pieces of firewood: own photo
C) Wood logs ready for Charcoal burning:
https://goo.gl/7sp1pJ
D) Charcoal packed and ready for market:
://goo.gl/nKzaWx
17th International Multidisciplinary Scientific GeoConference SGEM
2017, www.sgemviennagreen.org, SGEM2017 Vienna GREEN Conference
Proceedings, ISBN 978-619-7408-27-0 / ISSN 1314-2704, 27 - 29 November, 2017,
Vol. 17, Issue 33, 521-528 pp; DOI: 10.5593/sgem2017H/33/S14.065
The Government of Uganda, through the relevant authorities, implements the existing
forest and resource laws so as to ensure proper usage of the forest related products.
Furthermore, there is need for policy legislation on modern and or improved
technological use of forestry products, especially for firewood and charcoal.
Compulsory use of Improved Eco-stoves should be implemented to ensure efficiency
and effectiveness for sustainable forest development in regional development.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The research was financially supported by the project fund: IGA LDF MENDELU-
LDF_VP_2017027. We would like to thank Ms Hinke Wiersma at Forest Ecology and
Forest Management, Wageningen University & Research for a distinct review of this
paper.
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17th International Multidisciplinary Scientific GeoConference SGEM 2017
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