In 1948, Zoka forest was gazetted as a central forest reserve covering a total area of 6,145 hectares in Adjumani district. With about 1,258 hectares, Zoka being a tropical natural high forest it is a key water catchment area for River Nile and home to flying squirrels, suitable for research and ecotourism.
This unique beauty within northern Uganda’s only rainforest is under threat of extinction due to encroachment by settlers, agriculture, and unregulated extraction of forest products. Recently, the European Union (EU) envoys and government officials set foot in Adjumani to establish the extent of destruction and how to save the forest of degradation.
After a 35-minute walk in the forest led by Gen Moses Ali, the first deputy prime minister, officials observed that the central parts were still intact but the buffer zones have been heavily depleted by illegal logging of mahogany trees and charcoal-burning businesses. This has left wide and free access into Zoka forest.
Gen Ali said Adjumani has also become the next frontier for harvesting of wildlife in East Madi wildlife reserve. The forest covers 70 per cent of the reserve.
“As one of the refugee-hosting districts, the rising population has added pressure on the available natural resources for sustainable use, particularly in the buffer zone,” Ali said.
“When not checked, the protected area risks serious degradation.”
Statistics from Adjumani district local government (2019) indicate that about 80 per cent of the population depends on subsistence farming to meet food needs for both consumption and sale. Yet, subsistence farming is inherently inefficient to meet all the basic needs of farmers to break from the vicious cycle of poverty.
So far, the most affected sub-counties in Zoka are; Itirikwa, Pakele and Dzaipi. Lately, the vices of illegal logging, charcoal burning and agriculture have also extended to Pachara and Adropu sub-counties. According to Robert Owiny, the West Nile national forestry range manager, there are about 30 households in the northern section of the forest covering 150 hectares and more 200 households in the southern part occupying about 600 hectares.
“The southern part has seriously been depleted because Zoka has been dragged into the unresolved Apaa land conflict. So, the insecurity that side makes it difficult for us to reach some parts of the forest. Whenever we go as ordinary forest workers, people tell us this matter is at high-level discussion and resist our efforts to stop them from logging and charcoal burning,” Owiny said.
In comparison to other districts in the region, Owiny said, Adjumani still has a better tree cover, but due to the pressure from the adjacent areas for forest products and land clearance, it may soon lose most of its natural vegetation.
ILLEGAL PERMITS FUEL DEGRADATION
As a result of continued pressure from activists, the inner part of Zoka forest has been preserved but there are fears that it will not stay forever if the district authorities continue to issue permits warranting logging and charcoal businesses. According to the team leader of Friends of Zoka, a community-led group that lobbies for management of the forest, William Leslie Amanzuru, security forces and the Adjumani district officials allow illegal loggers to get away with their activities.
“If these licenses were not issued, the dealers would not have the guts to travel out of the district with these products. On several occasions, the district denied issuing the licenses, them, who is in illegal possession of the district signatures and stamps that appear on the permits?” Amanzuru asked.
While in Adjumanu, The Observer saw at least two signed documents issued by the district forest officer clearing a truck driver to transport 300 sacks of charcoal worth Shs 6m on November 1. The driver first paid Shs 2.2m to the district local government for a charcoal movement permit on October 30. Asked about the recent permit, the Adjumani LC V chairperson, James Leku, insisted that the district was not aware of the permits in question.
“We don’t issue out the licenses because the trees that are cut for logs or charcoal are endangered species that are supposed to be protected. We are also frustrated that we don’t have security to enforce illegal logging,” Leku said.
He added that wealthy business- men connive with some members of the community to cut trees or burn charcoal and transport their produce at night. He said efforts to engage security forces of NFA and Police that operate more than 20 roadblocks from Adjumani to Kampala have been futile.
“There’s a log depot in Kireka known by government where logs from Adjumani are prepared and exported out of the country. If there was no market, trees would be in Zoka but if this depot operates in broad daylight in Kampala and not closed, we also question the resolve of the central government in stopping illegalities of cutting logs and burning charcoal to save Zoka forest,” Leku said.
WAY FORWARD
To improve management of Zoka forest, EU envoys urged government to establish forest management infrastructure as well as increase community awareness on the impact of degrading natural reserves. The head of the EU delegation, Attilio Pacifici, expressed concern about the long journeys covered by forestry staffs in a bid to patrol the forest.
“There is no ranger outpost or for- estry station within the forest. How can these people do their work when they have to travel almost 50 kilometers from their homes in Adjumani town to Zoka every day? This is a serious issue that needs to be addressed in order to easily counter the illegal loggers, encroachers, and charcoal dealers,” Pacifici said.
While climate activists in Adjumani asked the EU for financial support to ease on their work, Pacifici said their proposal will be discussed with EU member states and government.
“Unfortunately, we have been giving moral but not financial support to such organisations. We shall sit as colleagues under the EU and discuss it such that one day, all individuals or organisations that are helping to identify key issues like environment for a country could receive some little support but in a transparent way,” he said.
On staff welfare, Owiny called for improved staffing of at least two forest supervisors and a team of eight patrol men with reliable transport means to improve forest patrols. This is in addition to enactment and enforcement of environmental by-laws and promoting tree planting and non- consumptive forest-based enterprises such as apiculture and eco-tourism.
Following several meetings with locals that shared their plight about Zoka, Gen Ali tasked the district authorities to close all temporary camps erected by illegal loggers with immediate effect. He also demanded for suspension of commercial production of charcoal and cancellation of licenses for harvesting forest products. It remains the prayer of Zoka forest activists that the Adjumani district leadership this time honours the agreed short-term measures.
MINISTRY INPUT
Meanwhile, the ministry of Water and Environment is finalizing plans to transform the forestry sector and landscape for sustainable growth and economic and social benefits. The soon-to-be unveiled two-year project is dubbed Investing in Forests and Protected Areas for Climate-Smart Development (IFPA-CD), and will be implemented with support from World Bank.
According to Alfred Okidi, the perma- nent secretary in the ministry of Water and Environment, the project invest- ments will combine forest management in both state-managed and community managed lands, increase revenues and jobs and support resilient livelihoods in targeted landscapes within the project area.
The project expects to achieve this by developing the economic productivity of forests and their surrounding landscapes.
“Government seeks to improve the management of forest and wildlife protected areas to ensure they can continue to generate revenues and provide important environmental services,” he said.
“We also want to increase revenues and jobs from forest and wildlife protected areas as well as enhancing productivity of the overall landscape through en- couraging establishment of greater tree cover and supporting sustainable forest management and landscape resilience on privately owned land.”