Threatened by imminent total destruction
of its forests, Tanzania has embarked on a programme to
strengthen conservation of some of its key natural vegetation that are
overwhelmed with the wantonly tree felling for timber and wood fuel. Under the programme, the government has finally
banned with immediate effect the exportation of wood and charcoal with a view
to restore forestation so as to protect the East African nation from turning
into desert. The move is to curb the increased phenomenon of the wanton tree
felling which continues unabatedly with exporters not adhering to country’s
policies. The continued random cutting of trees for timber and charcoal are
among the major drivers that causes deforestation. Statistics by the Tanzania
Forests Services Agency (TFSA), a government agency responsible for monitoring
the country's forestry activities, shows that, more than 370,000 hectares
(915,000 acres) of forests are being cut annually in the country to burn
charcoal. The Natural Resources and Tourism Minister, Prof Jumanne Maghembe
says that the new directives would end commercial exploitation of wood which has
already threatened sustainability of forest and nature in the country. The
Ministry’s report shows that Tanzania has 33.5 million hectares of forests, of
which about 13 million hectares have been gazetted as national game reserves. “From
now onwards no one is allowed to cut and transport wood or charcoal outside the
district of origin,” Prof Maghembe directed the Tanzanian Forest Service (TFS),
a semi-autonomous government Executive Agency mandated to manage the national
forest reserves. Prof. Maghembe further directed TSF officials to collaborate
with district commissioners countrywide in supervising the execution of the
directive as Tanzania is witnessing environmental burdens as a result of
excessive tree cutting. Some charcoal traders in the city of Dar es Salaam have
raised a grave concern saying that the government’s plan, however, would affect
many thousands of people who use charcoal as their main source of cooking
energy or earn a living from producing or selling it.
"If the government
doesn't want people to use charcoal, what else should we use for cooking?"
asked one famous charcoal trader Bakari Mwenda based in Gongo La Mboto on the
outskirts of the city. Many poor households across Tanzania’s main cities and
towns look to forests as a source of income, harvesting trees to supply growing
markets for charcoal and timber. Available statistics shows that, two million
tonnes of charcoal are being consumed in Tanzania each year, roughly half of it
is being supplied in most Dar es Salaam’s markets. Statistics by the World Bank
shows that, charcoal industry in Tanzania generates an estimated $ 650 million
a year, employing hundreds of thousands of people as producers and
transporters, as well as manufacturers and retailers of charcoal stoves. The
National Energy Policy 2015 says that, although Tanzania has many energy sources,
including natural gas and solar power, charcoal, firewood and other biomass
sources still account for 85 percent of total cooking energy consumption. The
policy has affirmed that, the increased charcoal consumption which is high
particularly in urban areas, has nearly doubled over the past decade as a
result of rapid urbanization and scarcity of affordable alternatives for other
energy uses. The policy further says that, the demand of charcoal fuel in the
country is expected to double from the current 2.3 million tonnes a year by
2030. A government push over the last decade to use more natural gas for
cooking has had some successes, with demand increasing from about 24,000 metric
tonnes in 2011 to 69,000 in 2015. The country uses over one million tonnes of
charcoal annually, half of which is consumed by households in Dar es Salaam.
Tanzania has been using approximately 87 million cubic metres of trees for
charcoal and firewood when only 64 million cubic metres per year is allowed.
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