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Gulu, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The National Forestry Authority-NFA in the Aswa River Range region have backtracked on their decision to give out impounded charcoal to the community and institutions.
Since July 2023, NFA, together with the Environmental Police Protection Unit-EPPU have impounded thousands of bags of charcoal in a crackdown on the illegal movement of forest products from the Acholi Sub-region from defiant charcoal traders.
President Museveni issued Executive Order Number 3 on May 19 stopping the massive cutting of trees for large-scale commercial charcoal production following outcries of declining forest cover in the region.
Grace Freedom Kwiyocwiny, the State Minister for Northern told reporters on Wednesday that she visited the NFA Gulu office last week and the manager told her they had decided to freely distribute the impounded charcoal to the community.
According to Kwiyocwiny, the manager of NFA Aswa River Region has in store 6,000 bags of charcoal for distribution to the needy and institutions such as schools and hospitals.
Kwiyocwiny however appealed to the community to reduce the massive tree-cutting and produce using trees from their regions.
However, John Giribo, the Aswa River Range Acting manager for the NFA, however, told URN on Thursday that they are now going to rely on the court order which clearly states that the impounded charcoal should be auctioned.
Giribo admitted that NFA had initially decided that the impounded charcoal could be distributed to institutions and the needy, but they failed to get a court order to that effect.
According to Giribo, the Chief Magistrate ruled that they could not lose revenue by giving the charcoal freely because it would be hard to verify who really deserves free charcoal, and that the institutions identified don’t use charcoal stoves.
Giribo says the NFA head office is still in the process of procuring a qualified bailiff from within the region. He says although there are prequalified bailiffs, they want one who is a native of the northern region.
He said that those who will buy the charcoal in bulk are prohibited from transporting it beyond the Acholi Sub-region and will be re-arrested.
On May 19, President Museveni signed Executive Order No. 3 prohibiting tree cutting for commercial charcoal production in northern Uganda.
The order follows complaints from local leaders in the region over the rising commercial charcoal production that has left natural forests degraded.
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