Sustainable Wood-Based Value Chains in Uganda: FAO and EU Launch €15M Project

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in collaboration with the European Union (EU), has announced the launch of a new 15 million euro ($16.29 million) project to promote sustainable practices in Uganda’s forestry sector. This five-year initiative, named “Sustainable Wood-Based Value Chains in Uganda,” aims to improve the contribution of Uganda’s forestry sector to both its economy and environment by ensuring a sustainable supply of legal wood raw materials from planted forests. The initiative also seeks to enhance the processing capacity and market demand for wood products and improve access to affordable finance.

Uganda’s forests face significant threats from encroachment, deforestation, illegal timber logging, and forest degradation. Forested land has been reduced from nearly a quarter of the country’s total area in 1990 to just 13 percent in 2017. The project will address these challenges by promoting better practices and more efficient processing facilities to enhance the quality and value of planted forests.

The EU’s commitment to supporting Uganda’s forestry sector is evident in the project, which aligns with the goals of the EU-Government of Uganda (GOU) Forest Partnership. This collaboration focuses on enhancing value addition to forestry resources, reducing environmental degradation, mitigating climate change, and improving the sustainable utilization of natural resources for economic growth and livelihood security.

To achieve economies of scale, the project will work to aggregate smallholder tree farmers and wood processors, facilitating their integration into a cohesive value chain. This approach will also involve providing financial literacy and business management support to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the wood sector, while connecting them with the financial sector.

The initiative also emphasizes the importance of transitioning Uganda towards a carbon-neutral economy by combating illegal timber trade, which causes substantial losses in tax revenue and contributes to deforestation. By supporting sustainable wood-based value chains, the project aims to incentivize the maintenance and expansion of forest assets, promote women’s economic empowerment, and enhance livelihoods.

Through upgrading value chains, the project will ensure the forestry sector can absorb the anticipated increase in wood production in the coming years, providing additional employment opportunities and income while supporting sustainable practices over illegal logging.

FAO’s Forestry division oversees more than 200 projects across 80 countries, including the global initiative “Sustainable Wood for a Sustainable World” (SW4SW), which aligns with the goals of the Uganda project. FAO’s expertise in the sector will contribute to the success of the initiative, working alongside the EU, the Government of Uganda, and other partners to support sustainable economic growth and environmental conservation in the region.