Only clean energy will save Zoka forest - activist

Tell us about yourself and the organisation you are running, how it started, and how easy it was to start.

I am Amanzuru William Leslie, and the team leader of Friends of Zoka, a community-based organisation that started as a pressure group to advocate for the protection and conservation of Zoka Central Forest Reserve located in Itirikwa Sub County, Adjumani District.

We started Friends of Zoka to respond to illegal activities that were taking place in the forest: timber dealing, commercial charcoal trade, etc. That was the first instance of our response because the issues around logging were so massive at that time. Every day, trucks and trailers exit the district while ferrying out forest products that are illegally harvested.

It wasn’t easy to start because, from the first day, we realised we were dealing with people who had power, influence, and were well-connected economically, socially, and politically. The same people have a lot of military protection.

So the journey has never been easy since day one. In between the journey, some of our friends left us, some were brutally killed and arrested, and we still have some members in prison or released on police bond.

We have also witnessed clashes between the Uganda Police Force personnel and the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) soldiers inside Zoka, fighting for timber. Bullets were shot, and we have evidence of this. We have also seen the National Forest Authority (NFA) coming to Adjumani to arrest and take their own personnel through disciplinary measures.

Why must we treat the matters around Zoka Central Forest Reserve as very important?

This forest reserve is extremely rich. Studies have shown that only around 60 percent of the forest is known to the world and the people around it. A lot has not been exploited from the forest. Its medicinal capacity is still hidden, so that gives the richness of the forest, which is also a beautiful tourist centre.

For the communities living around, they practice their cultural norms inside the forest, making it a sacred place that harbours a lot of cultural values for our people.

When you connect it to economics, the forest has a lot of opportunities for our people. For example, the wild fruits, the coffee inside, the bananas, the mango trees, and the wild pineapples all have economic benefits, let alone their capacity to regulate weather patterns.

The ecological capacity of this forest is huge. The flora and fauna systems are quite complex, making it a forest that defines life. Look at the flying squirrels, the birds, the butterfly species, and the many tree species. The ecological capacity is beyond.

I had an interaction with one of the conservation directors who sits at the National Forestry Authority during a talk show on KFM radio. The expert mentioned that Zoka Central Forest Reserve is a breeding ground for nsenene, and he gave the scientific evidence and said they have a document that details it.

Why are we seeing interest in conserving the forest beyond Uganda and the region?

You know, currently, the world is running deep in the crisis of climate change, and one of the most immediate things that can address the impact of climate change is leaving forests like Zoka intact so that their absorption capacity of carbon dioxide is quite huge.

If you look at the carbon trade market, Zoka Central Forest Reserve is supposed to be benefiting. The interest of the Europeans and Americans in supporting the NFA and community movements like ours is to communicate to the decision-makers of this country that such rich natural resources shouldn't be destroyed.

How would you rate your efforts in protecting and conserving the forest?

I would say the efforts of Friends of Zoka have yielded a lot of fruits. One, if you look at the executive decisions made in this country, President Museveni previously came out bold to say Zoka Central Forest Reserve must be protected and he spoke that four times in his public appearances, the media is a testimony to that.
Not only that, Parliament has discussions on Zoka Central Forest Reserve, with the resolutions arrived at. The most recent one was when the Deputy Speaker of Parliament [Thomas Tayemwa] requested that the Natural Resource Committee of Parliament come to Zoka on a fact-finding mission, much as they did not come, we count that as a positive move.

But then, two, there has been a change in community ideology. Previously, the community would think that it was not their responsibility to protect the Central Forest Reserve, but now, communities are partaking in arresting illegal charcoal dealers, illegal loggers, and illegal timber dealers. That community action alone is a testimony that the kind of work we have been doing is bearing fruits.
Cultural leaders of both Madi and Acholi have also sat down to talk about how to protect Zoka Central Forest Reserve.
But much as the army is deployed in [Zoka roadblocks] to protect the forest reserve, many of the community members know that every day, traders and lorries still pass through with charcoal. We don’t know our priorities yet, that is why.

What are the different kinds of illegalities that are happening inside the forest?
Daily, we experience illegal logging and charcoal dealings, but also recently we have heard of insecurity. There is also massive encroachment by the local community because of the boundary challenge.

The boundary that used to bear the first signpost and stretch 1.2 km to the next signpost at the forest’s entry was cut down, and we are asking in whose interest were they destroyed.
The charcoal dealers are getting deeper inside the forest every day, while the numbers of non-citizens are also increasing. The forest surrounding harbors people who are coming from Rwanda, South Sudan, DR Congo, and some of these neighboring countries like Burundi. This has fueled clashes.

You gave examples of shootouts involving the UPDF, police, or the NFA officers. Are these forces just not well-coordinated to protect the forest?
One of the biggest challenges we have is the lack of coordination, not only within the security agencies but also among partners and institutions that are supposed to protect the forest.
In most cases, the security agencies do not coordinate, and the UPDF does its work independently of the Uganda Police Force. There is also NFA and Uganda Wildlife Authority personnel.
Now, if all these three agencies of security cannot work together in the common interest of a central forest reserve, what more do you expect?

Three years ago, we did a nature walk organized inside Zoka Central Forest Reserve by the district, but we were framed and implicated by those who wished the walk not to happen. They claimed that those who went for the nature walk went as far as Zoka to touch houses yet the houses never existed.

Why are we working independently of each other when we are all working in the interest of protecting the forest? But we have engaged the UPDF and police here; we have also engaged the UWA and NFA to make sure we speak the same kind of language.

Why has the charcoal trade proven to be very difficult to stop? We have seen in your advocacy reports of fuel dealers being let free.
For charcoal deals, previously I used to look at it as just mere charcoal trading until of late when I realized this is the black gold of our region. Let’s imagine charcoal production is stopped, what alternative is there in Uganda that people can use to respond to the energy crisis? These alternatives are not there.
My interest here is for the government to sit down and look into viable alternatives to energy. Once we realize our alternatives, we can address the charcoal crisis.
Imagine a bag of charcoal from Zoka will cost you shs15,000, but as you move 470 kilometers to Kampala, this bag becomes shs120,000, meaning the dealer is making a profit of shs105,000.
The charcoal in Adjumani responds to the energy crisis in the Middle East, Kenya, central Uganda, South Sudan, etc. Almost 98 percent of Ugandans survive on charcoal and wood products, so we pay the price for this.
The government should look into the issue of reducing taxes on gas and revamp electrification of every homestead to respond to our energy gaps.

What has been the extent of the depletion of the forest?
For the past six years, West Nile has been experiencing terrible flooding. The first impact was at Obongi ferry crossing area in Obongi Town that was closed for two years. And Obongi Ferry is just in the vicinity of Zoka Central Forest Reserve.
There have been drastic weather patterns in this district. Ofua and Itirikwa sub-counties were the food basket of this district, but now, ask me, what kind of food comes from there? Nothing. Most food we eat comes from outside Adjumani. That is the most immediate crisis.
Itirikwa Sub-county is experiencing the spread of HIV/Aids and sexually transmitted diseases. It is because the men who come to work on the charcoal trade and log business intermingle with the local people around. There is also defilement and child neglect in Itirikwa Sub-county. So, all this is a result of the destruction of the forest.

Regarding clean energy as an alternative, do you think Uganda is ready for the transition?
We are not ready in a way, but the challenge is there is no political direction. For example, if the political leadership of this country chooses to sit and make a budget line that responds to the people’s needs regarding clean energy, it would be a perfect fit.

Our budget lines do not respond to our interest, which is why you have a district like Adjumani with a Natural Resource Department that has [no money] to use to protect its tree cover.

Which side of the forest has been the most affected?
The most devastated part of the forest is when you enter from the eastern and southern sides. The reason you see the northern part looking neat and quite intact, beautiful, and admirable is because of the efforts we have put in. But also it is because River Zoka blocks the loggers; the loggers have failed to penetrate River Zoka to cross to the northern side to harvest the trees.

Those who attempt to harvest the trees from the northern side also face community resistance. Otherwise, the destruction is so much from the upper side and when you come deep.
But you should also note that the destruction is quite massive where Uganda Wildlife Authority is absolutely in charge. If you look in terms of percentage, by the time we were responding to the crisis in Zoka, we had lost 70 percent. But now, because of our efforts and the local community, we can authoritatively talk of regaining more than 45 percent of the lost carbon, so, it’s a progressive move. We need to call upon every person, every human on earth to be friendly to nature.

Background
In 2016, Mr William Amanzuru and a group of environmental enthusiasts embarked on an online campaign (using social media) to question civil and political leaders of Adjumani District in the West Nile Sub-region on the severity of illegal activities that significantly degraded Zoka Central Forest Reserve.

The illegalities included illegal commercial lumbering, commercial charcoal production, and human encroachment. Mr Amanzuru and his team established Friends of Zoka, an environmental pressure group now operating like a community-based organization to consolidate their efforts.