KAMPALA, UGANDA – The National Forestry Authority (NFA) and the World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF) have announced plans to expand their collaborative efforts in forest conservation across Uganda.
The partnership, which aims to preserve the country’s natural resources and biodiversity, was highlighted during a recent courtesy visit by the WWF team to the NFA head office.
According to Stuart Maniraguha, Acting Executive Director of NFA, WWF has been instrumental in bolstering Uganda’s forest restoration initiatives.
“We appreciate WWF’s comprehensive support, encompassing equipment provision, capacity enhancement, and crucial ecosystem rehabilitation,” Maniraguha noted. “Over the past three years, WWF has consistently contributed to the improved management of forest reserves within the Bugoma-Kagombe landscape.”
Maniraguha highlighted the core objectives of the collaboration, which focus on restoring degraded central forest reserves, demarcating forest boundaries, and engaging local communities in sustainable forest management practices. This includes providing alternative livelihoods to reduce dependence on forests.
Maniraguha acknowledged WWF’s role in strengthening NFA’s capacity to address encroachment threats through advanced technology and enhanced mobility.
Currently, the NFA, in collaboration with WWF, district local governments, and neighboring communities, is spearheading the Natural Forest Regeneration for Enhanced Carbon Stocks in the Albertine Rift (FRECAR) project.
The FRECAR project, currently operating in the Bugoma-Kagombe landscape, will be expanded to cover additional critical areas, including Bugoma, Kagombe, Kitechura, and Ibambaro Central Forest Reserves.
The project focuses on Afforestation, Reforestation, and Revegetation (ARR) as well as Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+), and involves collaborative forest management groups.
Philip Kihumuro, Manager of the Natural Forest Regeneration Finance Carbon Absorption (FRFCA) project in the Albertine region, reported significant accomplishments over the past three years. “We have successfully restored 1,126 hectares of degraded forests in the Kagombe Central Forest Reserve and established 480 hectares of woodlots in collaboration with local communities,” Kihumuro stated. “Moreover, we have empowered communities to enhance their livelihoods through sustainable forest management practices.”
Kihumuro highlighted the establishment of village saving associations, enabling community members to save and access low-interest loans. “Through these initiatives, community members earn income by planting and maintaining trees, reducing their reliance on forests,” he explained. “To date, approximately $170,000 has been circulated among 39 community groups, significantly improving their economic well-being and mitigating pressure on forest resources.”
Mr. Fleming Voetmann, Vice President for External Relations and Sustainability at VELUX A/S, expressed his enthusiasm for the project’s progress. The VELUX Group and WWF have collaborated on a groundbreaking forest project, expected to contribute approximately one million tonnes of CO2 savings towards Uganda’s Paris Agreement pledge.
Voetmann highlighted the potential for further cooperation between WWF, the National Forestry Authority, and VELUX Group. The ‘Natural Forest Regeneration for Enhanced Carbon Stocks in the Albertine Rift’ (FRECAR) project, led by WWF-Uganda in partnership with the National Forestry Authority, aims to regenerate 34,000 hectares of forest, providing a significant contribution to Uganda’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
The project, launched in March 2021, has received full endorsement from the Ugandan Government. The VELUX Group’s funding will support the project’s goal of reducing carbon emissions, with all reductions or removals generated contributing to Uganda’s conditional NDCs.
The FRECAR project is part of a 20-year partnership between WWF and the VELUX Group, focusing on forest regeneration and conservation. The project will regenerate the Murchison-Semuliki landscape, a biodiversity hotspot with exceptional faunal and moderate floral endemism.
However, the region has faced significant deforestation, with a 66% decline in forest cover over the last two decades. The project aims to address this by regenerating degraded forests and promoting sustainable land use practices.
