Abstract:

The Uganda forestry sector has evolved since its inception as the Scientific and
Botany Department in 1898 through the Forestry Department (FD) 1929-2003 to
the present cooperate National Forestry Authority (NFA). The first Uganda
Forest Policy was gazetted in 1929 while the current "Uganda Forestry Policy"
was gazetted in 2001. The guiding principles for the current forest sector policy
include: national objectives for conservation and sustainable development,
livelihoods and poverty, biodiversity and environmental services, partnership and
governance, gender and equity, cultural and traditional institutions, international
obligations, and forestry valuation. It recognizes that Uganda's forests and
woodlands are central to the three pillars of sustainable development -
the economy, society and the environment, and therefore forestry sector is promoted
and given adequate priority. Promotion of positive understanding of forests and
trees, expansion of research activities, and provision of new directions for
sustainable development are also policy provisions.
The first laws on forestry were enacted in 1900 and underwent a series of
revisions. The present forest law was enacted in 2003 as the Forestry and Tree
Planting Act 2003. The legislation is mainly intended to protect and conserve the
forest estate. It also provides for the use of forest products for domestic use and
under license for trade and incomes.