Reversing driving forces against forest cover change | MorningAtNTV
Trees, forests, and woodlands cover about 14% of Uganda’s land surface. Over the last 30–40 years, growth in human population and a corresponding increase in demand for forest products for domestic and industrial use, expansion of agricultural land, illegal settlements, and weak forest management capacity have adversely affected the status of natural forests in Uganda, particularly biodiversity. Until recently, little attention had been paid to the development of commercial forests which should have provided alternative forest products and services to relieve the pressure on natural forests and conserve biodiversity. From 2001 to 2023, Uganda lost 1.10 Mha of tree cover, equivalent to a 14% decrease in tree cover since 2000, and 500 Mt of CO₂e emissions. Uganda's forests contain 109 million metric tons of carbon in living forest biomass. Stuart Maniraguha - Ag Executive Director, NFA is here to elaborate more on the state of nature in Uganda