Uganda: Making Money Through Sustainability

Source from:  All Africa 11/04/2010

ACRES of forests are being cleared in tobacco-growing districts of Pakwach, Arua, Nebbi, Yumbe, Koboko and Adjumani for fuel wood and charcoal burning. Trees are felled to provide fuel wood needed to cure or dry tobacco leaves from their natural green to the brownish colour seen in cigarettes. Environmentalists claim that thousands of acres of forests are being cleared for tobacco growing, curing and treatment, blaming tobacco company, British American Tobacco (BAT). But Charles Odipio, the Arua district secretary for production and natural resources, has a different view. "There is unfair competition in the tobacco growing business because some companies do not have woodlots forests for their farmers to cure their tobacco," he said. Three tobacco firms, Leaf Tobacco Company, Continental Tobacco and British America Tobacco operate in West Nile and Western Uganda, the major tobacco growing areas in Uganda. "Those free-riders (firms without own wood forests) have contributed to the destruction of trees as their farmers move to the natural forests to get the fuel wood," Odipio noted. "The problem is that the free-riders rarely plant enough trees to replace those cut for curing. We have no more trees here. They have no conscience about the damage they are doing. They have no regard for the future," he says. However, BAT has denied encouraging its farmers to cut down the natural forests, saying they grow trees in their reserves and encourage their contract farmers to plant trees for alternative sources of fuel. Alternative wood for curing tobacco should come from exotic species, particularly eucalyptus trees, which grow faster than the natural trees given that wood will continue to be the most affordable and accessible energy for farmers. William Ochen, the BAT agro-forestry manager in Arua, said their firm has an afforestation programme, which is part of the agronomy support to give to farmers contracted to supply leaf directly. "Tree planting aims to reduce the impact of growers' activities on wood consumption and to mitigate deforestation, change or loss of habitat or loss of natural forests," he explained. "Not all tobacco farmers need wood for their operations. Where they do, we encourage farmers to source it from woodlands grown for fuel supply purposes and to plant trees to supply their own needs." Ochen said for over 10 years, BAT has sponsored and promoted over 2000 hectare of tree planting. Sustainable forestry provides a community with a long term economic, biological and social resource. Enditem