Conservationists call for Ugandan government to halt forest ‘give-aways’

05-07-2007

Strictly not for release before 00.01 (GMT) Saturday 07 July 2007

Kampala, Uganda: The fate of Mabira Forest Reserve –home to 30% of bird species found in Uganda- continues to hang in the balance as President Museveni and some elements of the Ugandan government attempt to hand over a quarter of its area for sugarcane cultivation. [1]

BirdLife International and NatureUganda (BirdLife in Uganda) continue to argue that the economic benefits of retaining Mabira in its present form, will easily exceed the ‘short-sighted’ gains quoted by the government in the proposed forest ‘give-away’. [2] [3]

Mabira Forest Reserve (at over 30,000 hectares) is listed by BirdLife as an Important Bird Area (IBA) and contains over 300 bird species, including the Endangered Nahan's Francolin Francolinus nahani. The forest is also home to nine species found exclusively in the region including Grey-cheeked Mangabey Lophocebus albigena johnstoni, a recently identified endemic primate subspecies. [4]

In order to convey the enormous value of retaining Mabira Forest Reserve, NatureUganda has undertaken an economic study of the site, which they are now putting to the Ugandan government. Among the economic benefits of retaining Mabira that NatureUganda have outlined are:

1. Environmental services provided by Mabira Forest Reserve. Most notably the forest protects the water catchment area for Lake Victoria, Lake Kyoga and the River Nile. The forest also acts as a carbon sink worth $212 million USD at current carbon market prices.

2. Local livelihoods are supported via commodities that come from the forest, particularly from the sustainable harvesting of wood, food and medicines. The National Forestry Authority, the lead forestry agency in Uganda, last year estimated the value of the wood alone at $568 million USD.

3. Tourism at Mabira is another high-earner for Uganda: Mabira contributes 62% of the total revenue collected from visitors to Uganda’s Forest Reserves. Ecotourism is now Uganda’s second largest foreign exchange earner.

“The economic studies that we have undertaken clearly indicate that keeping Mabira Forest Reserve for reasons of conservation, constitutes a better land-use option than sugarcane growing when total economic value is considered,” said Achilles Byaruhanga, Executive Director of NatureUganda.

“If a quarter of Mabira is chopped down the effect on the remaining forest will be far-reaching, reducing the range of species, causing encroachment, erosion and siltation, and reducing its capacity to provide services, so there would be less water in rivers, less rain, less carbon intake, fewer tourists,” he added.

Greg and Yvonne Dean/ WorldWildlifeImages.com

Blue-throated Roller: One of Mabira's 300 bird species.
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“For the Ugandan government...to continue with a venture that is so very costly in terms of biodiversity loss and in terms of economic stability, is wholly deplorable.” —Hazell Shokellu Thompson, Head of BirdLife’s Africa Division

NatureUganda’s arguments for stopping the ‘give-away’ of Mabira Forest Reserve are supported by BirdLife International, a global alliance of over one hundred conservation organisations. [5]

“For the Ugandan government and Mehta Group [sugar company] to continue with a venture that is so very costly in terms of biodiversity loss and in terms of economic stability, is wholly deplorable.” said Hazell Shokellu Thompson, Head of BirdLife’s Africa Division. "However, we are confident that once all the facts have been reviewed, the Ugandan government will do the right thing for the Ugandan people and stop the ‘give-away’".

"Uganda ratified the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in 1993 and has a fairly good track record in upholding the treaty so far. The government has an obligation to continue to adhere to the agreement in the same way that many African and world nations do," he commented. [6]

“The sugar company itself also argues that it has a strict policy of environmental compliance which this venture quite obviously contradicts.” [7]

Mabira is only one of a number of ‘give-aways’ proposed by the Ugandan government, believed to be planning a bill to amend the National Forest and Tree Planting Act that would give the National Forestry Authority power to de-gazette protected forests without first going through parliament. [8]

ENDS

Press/photos: Jules Howard, Communications Officer, BirdLife International. Tel: +44 (0)1223 279809; Mobile: +44 (0)7971069098; email: jules.howard@birdlife.org

Editor’s notes:

[1] Sugarcane: Uganda has the lowest yield of sugarcane per hectare (12.6 tonnes per ha) compared to other countries in Africa, where average sugar production is over 80 tonnes per ha. NatureUganda argue that an alternative to the Mabira give-away exists in increasing efficiency on existing land used for sugar plantation.

[2] Currently the commercial value of the 7,100 acres of Mabira Forest is estimated at over $ 316 million USD without including biodiversity values or services, environmental services, or the land itself. Using the current sugar production levels at 12.6 tonnes per hectares, the 7,100 hectares would yield a maximum of 35,784 tonnes -equivalent to less than $20 million USD- in the next three years.

[3] Further details on Mabira: See this month’s feature article Uganda’s forests in the balance (reproduced online), taken from World Birdwatch magazine, June 2007.

[4] In recent years, funding from the European Union has gone toward the recovery of Mabira Forest Reserve. BirdLife Partners in EU countries are being urged to rally their governments to advise Uganda to respect its international commitments to biodiversity conservation.

[5] BirdLife International is a global alliance of conservation organisations working in more than 100 countries and territories who, together, are the leading authority on the status of birds, their habitats and the issues and problems affecting them. Nineteen African countries are members of the Africa BirdLife Partnership. NatureUganda is the BirdLife Partner in Uganda.

[6] The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), agreed upon at the Rio Earth Summit in 1992, entered into force in 1993. It is a global treaty with three objectives: the conservation of biological diversity, the sustainable use of biological diversity, and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising out of the use of genetic resources. The Convention has been ratified by 187 countries.

[7] Environment policy of Mehta Company: www.mehtagroup.com/main.htm

[8] In late 2006, there was widespread criticism and public protest when it was reported that the government had sacked the entire board of the National Forestry Authority (NFA), after they unanimously refused to carry forward the license requests. The Executive Director of the authority later also resigned under alleged similar pressure. The current NFA board are widely expected to ‘rubber-stamp’ future de-gazetting proposals.

The ‘Save Mabira Campaign’ – in which NatureUganda and ACODE (Advocates Coalition for Development and Environment) have been key players- attracted nationwide support, culminating in a public demonstration in the capital city Kampala in April 2007.

Since this time the Ugandan government has been largely silent about further discussions over the future of Mabira, in part to deter negative publicity in the run-up to the forthcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, being hosted by Uganda on 23-25 November 2007.

The proposed degazettement of Mabira has been linked to a large-scale dam project, funded by the World Bank. The contract agreement for the funding for the Bujagali Dam, on the Victoria Nile, states that: “..the Government of Uganda undertakes to conserve through sustainable management program/budget, the present ecosystem of the Mabira Forest Reserve and those portions of the Mabira Forest Reserve…”