UPDF 5 Infantry Division Distributes Impounded Charcoal To Households In Lira

The Uganda Peoples’ Defence Forces (UPDF) 5 Infantry Division has distributed impounded charcoal to households in Lira City as part of ongoing efforts to enforce the presidential directive against commercial charcoal burning in Northern Uganda.

The exercise was led by the Division Commander, Maj Gen Keith Katungi. The charcoal was seized during operations carried out under President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni’s Executive Order issued on 19 May 2023 in Baralegi Parish, Otuke District. The directive followed concerns from local leaders about widespread environmental destruction caused by commercial charcoal production.

Since enforcement began, security teams have intercepted more than 120 trucks transporting charcoal. The impounded loads had been kept at the Lira military barracks for months, prompting the division leadership and the Resident City Commissioner of Lira, Egole Lawrence, to distribute them to vulnerable residents.

Maj Gen Katungi said the initiative supports the wider national effort to restore Uganda’s environment. “Since 1960, more than 60 per cent of Uganda’s forest cover has been lost to charcoal burning and deforestation. This operation is meant to reverse that trend and protect the country’s future.”

RCC Egole praised the UPDF for carrying out the enforcement with professionalism and for rejecting bribes from dealers who attempted to evade the directive. He warned that those who violate the ban risk having their trucks auctioned and facing prosecution.

Authorities appealed to the public to take responsibility for safeguarding natural resources, noting that unchecked human activity continues to accelerate environmental degradation and global warming.