REDD+ in Uganda:

access rights and

equity must come first

Key policy messages

1. T
 o achieve equitable outcomes for rural communities REDD+ safeguards in Uganda
must be underpinned by substantive guidelines and practices beyond international
requirements for monitoring and reporting
2. T
 o aid recognition of communal tenure and multiple access rights, REDD+ must
align with and build upon land and forest governance mechanisms currently being
implemented by government and other stakeholders
3. T
 he limited number of REDD+ pilot projects in Uganda necessitates learning from
a range of interventions, including livelihood initiatives, development projects,
community based forestry and carbon forestry schemes
4. W
 eak accountability for decisions based on short-term political goals is common
in land and forest governance, undermining the trust and certainty required for
effective community engagement in REDD+
Background
To reduce deforestation and degradation,
REDD+ projects need to be equitable in both
procedures and outcomes. REDD+ brings
risks and opportunities for rural Ugandans
and successful projects must gain and
maintain the trust and support of diverse
local communities and avoid imposing costs
upon them. There is scant evidence from
REDD+ pilot projects in Uganda and limited
lessons have been drawn from relevant
conservation and development sectors,
To achieve equitable outcomes for
creating a need to scrutinise the context in
rural communities REDD+ safeguards
which REDD+ projects and safeguards are
in Uganda must be underpinned by
to be implemented. Since 2009, REDD+
substantive guidelines and practices
preparations have included a range of actors beyond international requirements for
and made progress towards international monitoring and reporting
requirements, meaning establishment
Safeguard information systems (SIS) are a key
of safeguards has been streamlined and
REDD+ instrument to ensure equitable participation
implementation of REDD+ projects is and distribution of benefits, costs and risks. However,
accelerating. But although longstanding an SIS approach limited to an indicator-based and
policies governing forests and land appear broad-scale reporting mechanism is unlikely to
identify some negative impacts felt by communities
to provide a supportive environment for
or minority groups, such as insecurity of tenure,
REDD+ in Uganda, the gap between absence of free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) or
policy rhetoric and implementation is often to allow for timely, responsive management to those
considerable. This policy brief presents issues. Understanding of equity issues as perceived
critical equity issues to be addressed in the by communities and social groups within them is
required to assess risks and determine whether
lead up to REDD+ implementation. Insights boundaries have been overstepped. Safeguard
stem from a two-day think-tank meeting procedures therefore need to go further to include
held with a range of REDD+ stakeholders in national or subnational assessment and guidelines
Kampala in August 2016. which draw on existing strengths and seek to
reinforce local institutions. Substantive guidelines
are required to respond to issues which may result
from REDD+, for example potential loss of customary
tenure, which commonly involves marginalised
ethnic groups. Where local standards do not exist,
procedures tailored to institutional context should
be established to fill this critical gap in the REDD+
framework. For example, in Tanzania guidelines
exist for village-level organisation in community
forestry enabling accountability in decision making,
grievance redress mechanisms and, through regular
meetings and bottom-up reporting of issues,
this supports responsiveness to negative social
impacts1. A locally oriented approach involving
mediation by experienced, neutral, trusted people
and organisations (rather than reliance on external
consultants) may promote management responsive
to issues faced by communities and vulnerable
people, thereby avoiding future costs of dealing with
grievances.
To aid recognition of communal tenure
and multiple access rights, REDD+ must
align with and build upon land and forest
governance mechanisms currently being
implemented by government and other
stakeholders
Deforestation and forest degradation has been rapid in
Uganda over recent decades. However, the Ugandan
government has set ambitious targets for increasing
forest cover in the short, medium and long-term, and on
27th July 2016 signed the Kigali Declaration on Forest
Landscape Restoration in Africa. The pathways to
achieve these goals are largely unspecified. However, it
is clear is that land and forest governance in Uganda are
highly dynamic, with possible overlapping regimes, and
this presents a challenging social and political context
for REDD+ and other re- or afforestation projects are to
operate in. Despite their provision in laws established in The limited number of REDD+ pilot
the 1990s, community forest management, communal projects in Uganda necessitates learning
land agreements and certificates of customary from a range of interventions, including
ownership have only recently been piloted and are in livelihood initiatives, development
the process of being extended and trialled widely across
projects, community based forestry and
the country2,3. These far-reaching initiatives impact on
many aspects of environmental governance with strong carbon forestry schemes
implications which cannot be overlooked in REDD+. There have been few REDD+ pilot projects in Uganda
and few examples of best practice or key lessons have
emerged. Therefore, evidence must be drawn from
relevant successes and failures across conservation
and development in Uganda and East Africa. For
example, experience from carbon forestry projects
reveals registration of communal land or forest is highly
centralised and may take years, at substantial cost to
the applicant - a disincentive to seek formal tenure and
barrier to the establishment of REDD+ projects2,3. The
absence of adequate, accessible administrative systems
to facilitate such essential steps may threaten project
viability, by causing extensive delays in delivery of local
benefits or failure to deal with grievances leading to loss
of support or use of courts for redress.

Institutional barriers may further inhibit REDD+

implementation in Uganda. Many working in the forest
sector describe state departments as islands due to
administrative boundaries. For example, it is common
to charge other departments for data use. Political buy
in to REDD+ amongst relevant ministries and integration
between departments is essential to address the diverse
drivers of deforestation and degradation.
Weak accountability for decisions groups, of institutions proposing land or forest projects.
based on short-term political goals is Similar issues have affected carbon-oriented forestry
projects such as at Bukaleba Forest6.
common in land and forest governance,
undermining the trust and certainty Pilot carbon forestry projects in Uganda have increased
required for effective community understanding of the intensive groundwork required to
engagement in REDD+ develop relationships with communities, as prerequisite
for any consultation. REDD+ projects focused on carbon
Communities across Uganda have experienced volatile accounting to raise financial benefits may fail to address
decision making, including unstable access to forest these important steps providing the foundation for
resources, sporadic encouragement for conversion to equitable outcomes. Pilots, often supported by foreign
agriculture and projects involving concession of tenure NGOs, may have sufficient resources to enable flexibility,
to private or public sectors. The history of conservation but attention to requirements for gaining local support
conflict at Mount Elgon provides a compelling example may be lacking in subsequent REDD+ projects. The lack
where lack of transparency has led to mistrust of state of confidence in institutions governing land and forests
forest managers and project proponents, with acute requires guidelines for community engagement and
social and environmental impacts4,5. Similar issues of participation specific to the Ugandan context in order
short-termism, corruption, oversight of basic rights, lack to first build awareness and trust. The involvement of
of justice mechanisms and apparent impunity of those established local groups, cooperatives and NGOs will be
responsible have overshadowed forest conservation essential to empower people sufficiently to participate
across the country. This has led to pervasive mistrust and make informed choices.
among rural Ugandans, particularly marginalised cultural

Further information and funding

Authors and affiliations: This brief was produced through the project Rethinking Environment and Development in
an Era of Global Norms: Exploring international politics of justice on carbon forestry and hydropower (REDEGN2).
It was written by Neil Dawson and David Mujasi Mwayafu with contributions from Janet Fisher, Mark Zeitoun, Patrick
Byakakaba, Heike Schroeder and Hari Dhungana. Funding was provided by UK Economic and Social Research
Council and Department for International Development through a Development Frontiers Research Grant, duration
Jan 2016 to July 2017. Project website link: https://www.uea.ac.uk/devresearch/research-themes/global-
environmental-justice/redegn-ii-rethinking-environment-and-development-in-an-era-of-global-norms-exploring-
international-politics-of-justice-on-carbon-forestry-and-hydropower

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