Enhancing Forestry Management for Sustainable Development: Insights from NFA Mandate

1. A PAPER PRESENTED AT THE LOCAL GOVN’T BUDGET CONSULTATIVE WORKSHOPS FOR FY 2017/18 ON FORESTRY IN LINE WITH FORESTRY POLICY 2001 & NDP II BY M & E SPECIALIST NATIONAL FORESTRY AUTHORITY 12TH TO 30TH SEPTEMBER 2016

2. SUMMARY • MANDATE OF NFA • FUNCTIONS OF NFA • NFA’S ROLE IN POLICY IMPLEMENTATION • NATIONAL OBJECTIVES • LAND COVER MONITORING • CHALLENGES • CONCLUSIONS • RECOMMENDATIONS

3. MANDATE OF NFA • NFA was created in 2003 under the National Forestry and Tree Planting Act (NFTPA); and became operational in 2004. • NFA is mandated to operate within the framework of the National Forestry Policy (2001), Forest Plan (2002) and NFTPA • NFA’s main role is management of the 506 CFRs which covers an area of 1.26 million ha.

5. FUNCTIONS OF NFA • Develop and manage all CFRs; • Promote innovative approaches for local community; private sector participation in the management of CFRs; • Establish procedures for sustainable utilization of Uganda’s forest resources; • Cooperate and coordinate with NEMA and other lead agencies.

6. National Objectives (NDP II) • Increasing household incomes and promoting equity • Enhancing the availability and quality of gainful employment (Middle income status) • Promoting sustainable population and the use of environmental and natural resources • Improving stock and quality of economic infrastructure

7. NDP II-SECTORAL KEY RESULTS, OBJECTIVES & INTERVENTIONS WEALTH CREATION AND EMPLOYMENT FOR ENVIRONMENT & NATURAL RESOURCES • Increase the percentage of forest cover from 14% in FY 2012/13 to 18% in FY 2019/2020 • This means restoration of about 1.8 million ha (1.6 million on private land, 200,000ha on PAs)

8. Governance issues: The ActThe National Forestry and Tree Planting Act (2003) • Encourages public participation in the management and conservation of forests and trees, • Facilitates greater public awareness of the benefits of conserving and increasing forest cover, • Promotes decentralisation and transfer of functions, powers and services from the centre to local governments.

9. The National Forestry and Tree Planting Act …..Contd • Promotes governance and transparency in forestry • Addresses issues of conservation, sustainable management and development of forests • Aims at enhancing the productive capacity of forests • Promotes the contribution of forestry to poverty eradication • Promotes tree planting and growing

10. Why was the NFA created? • Long-standing problems with the Forestry Department • Stronger protection of the nation’s CFRs which are 50% of the Permanent Forest Estate • 506 CFRs >1.2million Ha • High economic value, needs strong business-like management: • wood, employment, rural income & livelihoods • 90% of domestic energy is from wood • soil & water conservation, climate amelioration

11. NFA’S ROLE IN POLICY IMPLEMENTATION • Protection and effective management all CFRs; • Regulating the exploitation of the Natural Forests; • Promoting CFM with Local Communities; • Partnering/licensing Private Sector to plant trees on CFRs; • Promoting and training the public in the best forestry practices; • Enforcing the provisions of the NFTPA.

12. IMPLEMENTATION OF THE 2001 FORESTRY POLICY • Management and Expansion of the Forest Estate through tree planting: NFA planting, removal of encroachers to revert the land to tree planting…… Policy Statements 10 and 11. • Livelihoods and Poverty: - CFM, patrol men, contracted services, training for private nursery operators, ecotourism. Policy Statements 11 and 10. • Biodiversity and Environmental Services: efforts to sell carbon, the efforts to reduce illegal actions which impact on water, flora and fauna. Policy Statement 7 and 8. • Partnerships in Governance: Sawmillers, tree planters, CFM, seed suppliers, patrols, boundary consultations with Local leaders. Policy Statement 3 & 5.

13. Forest Cover Loss from 1990 to 2015

14. STAKEHOLDER/PARTNERSHIPS OPPORTUNITIES IN MANAGEMENT OF FORESTS • Creation of Employment Opportunities for communities • Increased forest resource base • Tree-planting on at least 5% of the land on forests in their locality. • Sustainable utilisation of non timber forest products. • Non consumptive use of forests(ecotourism)

15. CONSERVATION CHALLENGES • Illegal activities i.e. unathorised extraction of produce, farming in CFRs, use of power-saws etc. • Increasing encroachment. • Inadequate funds for NFA. • Political misguidance of people. • Hostile Communities.

16. Illegal Sand-mining, in CFRs.

17. Illegal Charcoal-burning in CFRs

18. Timber abandoned by Illegal Loggers in CFRs

19. CONCLUSION • Encroachment and illegal harvesting are the main threats to effective management and conservation of forest resources. • Deforestation has taken place inside protected areas, but most of it has taken place on private land (outside the protected areas).

20. RECOMMENDATIONS: (PROTECTED AREAS) • LGs should support orderly evictions, starting with FRs of high ecology values. • District leaders and Communities should back-up NFA and actively support forest conservation and tree-planting efforts in the country. • LGs should support re-opening of boundaries of all FRs

21. RECOMMENDATIONS: (PRIVATE FORESTS) • Need to strengthen the District Forest Services to function effectively; through staffing and funding • Private natural forest owners deserve to be paid/compensated for protection and sustainable management efforts. • Improve agricultural productivity on private land to reduce need to clear forests for new land for crops.

22. RECOMMENDATIONS (GENERAL) • Encourage people to plant trees on private and public land – NFA is in a campaign to encourage tree-planting (Community Tree Planting Programme). • NFA and District Forest Services need to work in close collaboration. • Incitement of encroachers should be discouraged to enable NFA effectively stop destruction of forest reserves and restore them through tree-planting.

23. END Thank You