Man and Climate change in Uganda

Man?s relationship with nature has to a greatest extent led to the adverse climate changes effects that are cropping up in Uganda.

Uganda depends heavily on environment and natural resources.
Over 90% of the population directly or indirectly depends on the products and services from agriculture, fisheries, forests, wetlands etc.
Natural resources account for 85% of export earnings and more than 80% of the workforce is active in agriculture

The country is subject to several environment related worrying trends
which put economic, environmental and social development at
risk. These include soil degradation, deforestation, drainage of wetlands, loss of biodiversity, pollution and unsanitary conditions.
Many of the problems are associated with poor management of water resources and lack of energy causes strain on growth and threatens the forest cover.In 2004 biomass (firewood, charcoal etc) contributed with 93% of energy supply, oil products with 6 % and electricity 1%. The deficit in forest fuel supply amounts to 38 million tones per year and the demand for wood is expected to triple by 2025 which threatens to severely diminish the resource base and biodiversity

Most of the people both in rural areas and urban areas use charcoal and firewood as a source of energy and this is reducing the forest cover.
The population increase and rural urban migration has led to people settling in wetlands and so affecting the ecosystem, flooding during heavy rains.
For example a catastrophy that happened in Bududa on the slopes of mountain elgon, a landslide that left over 400 people dead and many were displaced.An increase in the frequency of weather events with serious socio- economic consequences for example the most extreme event experienced being the El Nino of 1997/98. This El Nino is reported to have inflicted heavy losses perhaps the most severe. For instance, it swept bridges (many
towns were cut off from commercial center causing heavy losses in goods
and services), crops were destroyed, outbreak of water borne diseases
such as cholera and other flood-related diseases.
A lot more is coming up as the result of human activities. But however steps have been taken by the government of Uganda and the Non Governemental organisations for example, As shelter and settlement alternatives, we have taught people how to make interlocking blocks as one of the building technologies. The interlocking blocks are reducing on the deforestation levels and also emissions that have been frequent during brick burning. Many people have indeed adopted to the building technology.

Uganda?s approach to climate change is highly linked to its international engagement with climate change politics. Having ratified the UNFCCC and the Kyoto Protocol, the country is also party to important multilateral agreements such as the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), the Ramsar Convention, the Convention on Biological Diversity (UNCBD) and the Montreal Protocol. International co-operation on climate change and environment issues is at the core of Uganda?s approach to tackle climate change. Yet, despite being rather active at the international level, domestic legislation and policy are still underdeveloped Uganda lacks a comprehensive and overarching legislation that provides the basis for domestic action on climate change, but rather has a number of relevant official plans, policies and institutional bodies relating to climate change.
Uganda created a Climate Change Unit (CCU) in 2008, which was elevated to the Department of Climate Change (DCC) in 2014. The DCC is directly under the office of the Permanent Secretary within the Ministry of Water and Environment (MWE)
Uganda is trying to intergrate climate change into the National Development Plan and the entire development agenda.
This is to be done by developing and reinforcing the legal and institutional frameworks surrounding climate policy as well as redefining climate change as a development issue. Other key sectors such as agriculture, fisheries and water resources promoted the need to integrate climate targets in their on-going development plans. The NDP also aims to promote energy efficiency by strengthening the institutional and regulatory framework for energy as well as promoting the use of renewable and atomic energies. This includes plans to develop four large hydropower projects as well as a smaller hydropower plant.
Energy Supply
About 93% of energy needs are met by bio-mass, which, according to the First and Second National Communications, is the dominant energy supply for households, agro-based industries and other small scale industries such as lime, brick and tile making. Electricity consumption only accounts for about 1% of energy use, as only 12% of Uganda?s 36m people are connected to the electricity grid. Subsequently, the remaining 6% of the energy supply is oil. Approximately 32% of total installed electricity generating capacity comes from fossil fuels, 65% is from hydroelectric facilities, and 3% is from other renewable sources.
Between 2007 and 2009, Uganda implemented the first phase of a Renewable Energy Feed-in Tariff (REFIT). The goal of the REFIT is to offer cost-based compensation to private sector renewable energy producers, providing price certainty and long-term contracts that help finance small-scale renewable energy investments. The first phase resulted in a lack of private investment and revisions to the REFIT were implemented in 2012.
Uganda also created a Biofuel programme and a Modern Energy Service Programme, in 2011. The Biofuel programme aims to support investments in the production and use of ethanol, biodiesel, methanol and biogas. Specifically, the programme obligates all dealers in petroleum products to blend fossil fuels with biofuels, up to 20%. The Modern Energy Service Programme will promote renewable-energy-based technology for households, institutions, commercial buildings and small-scale industries. In particular, these services will be for cooking, lighting, machinery and ICT.
Energy Demand
In 2002, Uganda set out an Energy Policy with the aim of meeting energy needs for social and economic development in an environmentally sustainable manner. The Energy Policy gives a detailed analysis of both supply and demand side sectors and develops policy objectives accordingly. Moreover, it outlines short- and medium-term action plans in order to realise these goals. The broad objectives of the policy centre on increasing the growth of the energy sector and, coincidentally, increasing economic growth and development more generally increasing access to energy resources in order to alleviate poverty and to manage energy-related environmental impacts. The Government hopes to achieve this final objective by promoting environmental considerations amongst both energy suppliers and consumers as well as by establishing a monitoring mechanism to evaluate the compliance of producers with broad targets for the reduction of emissions.
The government is promoting the use of renewable energy.This will reduce in forest loss and will promote environmental sustainability.
Covering the 2010 to 2015 period, the Agricultural Sector Development Strategy and Investment Plan recognises that agricultural activities can have a major impact on environmental issues such as land use and degradation, soil and water pollution, deforestation and loss of biodiversity. As such, it endeavours to integrate environmental management in the plan and so takes on the National Environment Act and other key sets of regulations resulting from it as guides for future agricultural conduct.
The National Land Policy, released in 2013, notes that Uganda has never had a clearly defined Land Policy, exacerbating pressure on scarce natural resources and the sustainability of land use. The policy has the aim of promoting the sustainable and optimal use of land and land-based resources to further poverty reduction, wealth creation and socio-economic development. It hopes to articulate a more sophisticate set of mechanisms for land management and regulation in order to promote sustainable and productive use and to mitigate anthropogenic climate activities such as deforestation, forest fires and destructive agricultural practices.
Adaptation
In 2010 a National Policy for Disaster Preparedness and Management was made. This policy notes that the effects of disasters such as droughts, epidemics and earthquakes have increased over time. It recognises that policies on sustainable development and climate change mitigation and adaptation are mutually supportive alongside efforts to reduce the frequency and effects of disasters. The policy therefore urges the reduction of the causes and negative impacts of climate change.
Moreover, the 2007 National Adaptation Programme of Action (NAPA) presented to the UNFCCC identifies the following priority areas: Community Tree Growing Project, Land Degradation Management Project, Strengthening Meteorological Services, Community Water and Sanitation Project, Water for Production Project, Drought Adaptation Project, Vectors, Pests and Disease Control Project, Indigenous Knowledge and Natural Resources Management, Climate Change and Development Planning Project.
References
http://www.lse.ac.uk/GranthamInstitute/legislation/uganda.