Illegal Deforestation and Agricultural Commodities: Uganda
By Forest Policy, Trade, and Finance Initiative View PublicationAgricultural conversion is the main driver of forest loss in Uganda. The majority of Uganda’s forest-risk agricultural products are sold and consumed domestically (particularly cassava, beef, maize, and groundnuts). Shifting agriculture is responsible for 94 percent of Uganda’s forest loss, with a further two percent linked to commercial agriculture and mining.
While there are good data linking commodities to deforestation, there is a severe lack of data specifically linking illegal deforestation to each of the major commodities. Due to governance and enforcement challenges across both the forest and agricultural sectors, it is likely that most commodities linked to deforestation are also linked to at least some form of illegality and some form of due diligence is required to ensure an illegal deforestation-free supply chain.