EnviroConserve Magazine, Jun - Aug, 2015 by The Infrastructure Magazine

POPE FRANCIS STEERS CLEAR HIS CLIMATE CHANGE CONCERNS

ISSN 2071-2375

TRANSITION TO THE GREEN ECONOMY

NEW ENVIRONMENT DAY REPORT

Vol. 13 No. 44

for our environment and sustainable development

Aug/Oct 2015

Ushs: 6500, Kshs: 250, TShs: 6000, Africa: USD15, Outside Africa: USD 30

G R STE

EDUCTION

STILL ON UNSUSTAINABLE PATH....24

SUS T A IN A B LE

GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT

ALBERTINE GRABEN ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING PLAN ESTABLISHED ...10

RE C YC L

U NS

N TIO P M

RE-USE MATERIAL

SUSTAINAN BLE

ON I T

EN ER

CY IEN IC FF

EEN ECONOMY: E R G

CONVERTING PLASTIC WASTES INTO FUEL ..20

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EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October

Editor’s Note Vol. 7 No. 29 August - October 2015

Sustainability: Can our society withstand?

mong the many ways that sustainability has been defined, the simplest and most fundamental is: “the ability to sustain” or, put another way, “the capacity to endure.” .

Today, it is by no means certain our society has the capacity to endure – at least in such a way that the nine billion people expected on Earth by 2050 will all be able to achieve a basic quality of life. The planet’s ecosystems are deteriorating and the climate is changing. We are consuming so much, and so quickly, that we are already living far beyond the earth’s capacity to support us. And yet nearly a sixth of our fellow humans go to bed hungry each day: both an unnecessary tragedy and a source of social and political unrest. Meanwhile, our globalized world is more interconnected and volatile than ever, making us all more vulnerable. While sustainability is about the future of our society, for today’s industries and businesses, it is also about commercial success. The mandate to transform businesses to respect environmental limits while fulfilling social wants and needs has become an unparalleled platform for innovation on strategy, design, manufacturing and brand, offering massive opportunities to compete and to adapt to a rapidly evolving world.

The Governments and civil society Actions To endure, we as a society must transform our markets – both how we produce and consume, and the very ways in which we define and measure value and progress. This is a big challenge, and not just for business and economics. It is a call for massive social, political, technological, cultural and behavioral transition. We will need governments to set incentives, targets and rules for a level playing field, civil society actors to hold us to account and to experiment with new ways of delivering social impact, and each of us to take actions in our own lives to reward sustainable business models and to eat, work, travel and play more sustainably. Businesses role crucial

To achieve this transformation, we need the capacity of business to innovate and to execute, meeting market needs swiftly, effectively and on a global scale. To do this in a way that “meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”, we will need new ways of doing business. The successful businesses of tomorrow will be those that lead and create value both inside and outside the walls of the company. This will mean managing for the long-term as well as the short-term, developing strategies that balance competition and cooperation, designing and delivering products and services that meet social and environmental needs, shifting to more resilient business models based on closed-loop, open-source, peer-to-peer or service-based principles, incorporating the true costs of environmental and social resources, and seeing transparency and collaboration as sources of competitive advantage. For these businesses, sustainability means not only eco-efficiency, but also ecoeffectiveness. Sustainability is absolutely about marketing and branding – when that means identifying market needs based on long-term prosperity and creating tribes of sustainable consumers. Sustainability needs to be about ‘greening’– because businesses and communities depend on healthy, productive ecosystems. Sustainability can also encompass corporate philanthropy. Above all, we believe that for tomorrow’s enduring businesses, sustainability will be about making money by meeting real and fundamental human needs. That was the essence of the rallying call:“Seven Billion Dreams. One Planet. Consume with Care”

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October 2015

Enjoy reading this edition.

David A. Matende

Group Publisher Robert Opio Editor David Andrew Matende Staff Writer Chris Wandera

Correspondents Obadiah Ayoti - Nairobi Ben O’Nyasimi - Nairobi Guest Writers Mugambwa David - Kampala Sales & Marketing Manager Robert Oduori

Advertising Executives Grace Akello Ben Byaruhanga

Design & Layout Vincent A. Ooko Send articles for publication to the publisher EnviroConserve AFRICA P.O. Box 8585, Kampala, Uganda Tel: 256-41-268616/268738, Tel/Fax:256-41- 268997 E-mail: info@enviroconserve.org enviroconserve@gmail.com, ico@africamail.com www.enviroconserve.org Nairobi Office: P.O. Box 18660- 00100 Nairobi Tel: 254-20-2076903/+254-20-3505603 Fax: 254-20-2211500 0734-262734/0725-319664

Disclaimer EnviroConserve AFRICA, encourages stakeholders to submit articles for publication. The publisher reserves the right to edit all non sponsored articles before publication. Neither the publisher nor any person acting on behalf of the publisher, may be held responsible for the use to which information (content) in this publication may be put. Non-commercial reproduction authorized subject to acknowledgement of source and must obtain written permission.

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Uganda - Updates

Contents

CONTENTS COVER STORY

5-7 Updates East African Carbon Fair held in Kampala Uganda to issue 13 more licenses to ecotourism investors First African Green Growth Forum to Unlock the

The East African Carbon Uganda to issue 13 more licenses to investors in Fair Held in Kampala ecotourism

Continent’s Economic Potential The East African Community and IUCN establish framework for observatory for Protected areas 8 Governments shift gear to deliver Paris Agreement

Ag. Commissioner of Climate Change Department Ministry of Water and Environment, Chebet Maikut addressing the press after opening the meeting of Climate.

9 Pope Francis steers clear His concerns over Paris Cover photo: Caster seeds, Maize cons, Palm oil nuts and Jatropha, they are suitable for making bio-fuels

Climate Change Conference 10 World Environment Day celebrations in Rakai District

Bussiness & Environment 12 Tororo Cement: promoting environmental sustainability and development through corporate

social responsibility 14 Environmental sustainability: SCOUL embraces zero discharge of its distillery effluent 16 Crown Beverages embraces environmental sustainability to enhance its business

competitiveness 17 Why African countries need to transition to the green economy 20 World can prevent financial and environmental costs, new environment report says 29 Vivo Energy Uganda Doing Business Responsibly

31 Uganda’s Progress towards on MDGs 33 Rwenzori Bottling Company: Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives in Plastic Waste collection and recycling 34 Epsilon Uganda in a cleanup exercise with NEMA to get rid of plastic bags waste

26 4

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October 2015

he Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for the Environment (BMUB) in collaboration with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Regional Collaboration Centre (UNFCC/RCC), the Gold Standard Foundation and the East African Community organized the first ever East Africa carbon fair on the 1415 July 2015 at the Sheraton Hotel Kampala. The fair brought together p r o j e c t d e ve l o p e r s fr o m East Africa, international companies that purchase emission reduction certificates from voluntary (VERs) and compliance (CERs) markets, financial institutions, carbon consultants and companies seeking to undertake Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) with green projects.

The two day event featured a good number of presentations and interactions that answered questions such as; Which types of certificates exist in the market? How can you ensure that you get the amount of emission reductions you need? How can co-benefits help to make your investment more attractive? Is it politically and economically safe to buy in East Africa? The event gave the members in attendance a better understanding of the context of carbon projects in East Africa and emissions trading at both the compliance market and voluntary market. Some of the issues raised during the event will be presented and addressed during the UNFCCC Cop21 Conference on Climate Change in Paris later this year which aims to achieve a legally binding and universal agreement on climate, with the aim of keeping global warming below 2°C by the year 2020■

ganda is planning to issue 13 more licenses to prospective investors in ecotourism in a move to conserve forest resources, the country’s forestry regulator has said. The National Forestry Authority spokesperson Gilbert Kadilo told local that they are looking at developing new strategies to harness economic value from the forest resources in a nonextractive manner, and thus conserving the environment. “We are constantly looking for developing new strategies for forest resource management…our thinking is that we need to expand our strategies and methods of forest management, and it is against this background that we learnt that tourism or ecotourism could be employed as a strategy for conservation,” Mr. Kadilo said. “The value of ecotourism as a strategy for conservation is that it assures us sustainable forest resource utilisation while maximizing the economic value of these forests, and this moves us away from looking at the economic value of this forest from the perspective of forest products like timber, charcoal, and wood fuel.” Ecotourism is a form of tourism involving visiting fragile, pristine, and relatively undisturbed natural areas, intended as a low-impact and

often small scale alternative to standard commercial (mass) tourism. Mr. Kadilo said the authority is currently reviewing a number of applications on a case to base basis and in due course, the best evaluated bidders will receive their licenses to develop the eco-tourism sites. “Our emphasis is that the development of these sites must be done in an eco-friendly manner- we don’t expect large scale clearing of sites, we expect as much as possible that local materials are used, and that at the end of the day, the facility blends into the natural environment,” Mr. Kadilo said. Though Mr. Kadilo could not state how much NFA is targeting in the new initiative, it is understood that the forestry watchdog is in need of Ush34billion ($11.17million) to cater for demarcation of all the 506 forest reserves across the country to protect them from human encroachment. So far, only 13 have been demarcated. The areas targeted for the establishment of ecotourism sites, according to NFA, includes; Kalinzu and Muko in

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October

East Africa Community

Kenya - Updates

“Investing in ecotourism is a good initiative so long as investors do not plant foreign trees like pine into the natural forests” south western Uganda, Kitubulu in Entebbe area, and lutoboka in Kalangala District. Those that have been identified as having ecotourism potentials include; Zulia, Morongole, and Lwala central forest reserves in Kaabong District, Mt Moroto in Moroto District, Nyangea-Napore forest reserve located between Kitgum and Kaabong Districts, Otzi and Laura forest reserves in Arua District, Zoka forest reserve in Adjumani District, and Bugoma central forest reserve in Hoima District. Others are Maramagambo and Echuya forest reserve in South Western Uganda. Already, Uganda has seven licensed ecotourism sites dotted across the country’s forest reserves including Mabira forest along Jinja-Kampala highway, Mpanga forest along Kampala-Masaka highway, and Budongo forest reserve in western region. The NFA’s move comes at the time the country’s forest resources are threatened due to human encroachment for agriculture, unsustainable harvesting for construction and wood fuel as well as settlement. According to the National Environmental Management Authority, the country’s woodland cover now stands at 20 per cent down from 45 per cent in 1890, adding that tropical rain forest in terms of number of species and trees, has also declined over time with over 30 per cent being classified as degraded. It is estimated that 92,000 hectares of trees are lost annually, implying that there will be no forests in the country in the next 10 years if the current situation is not reversed. Environmentalists said the government’s move to manage forest resources through ecotourism is a good initiative but will require close monitoring of investments.■

First Green Growth Forum to Unlock the Africa’s Economic Potential

The East African Community and IUCN establish framework for observatory for Protected areas

T Participants in the Green Growth Forum led by Deputy President of Kenya, William Ruto

he first African Regional Green Growth Forum opened in Nairobi in May, was attended by the President of Kenya, Uhuru Kenyatta, and more than 200 delegates, including African ministers of environment, policy-makers, international financial and environmental experts, and leaders from the private sector. The Forum was jointly organized by the Government of Kenya, the Government of Denmark and the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP), under the umbrella of the Global Green Growth Forum (3GF) which convenes governments, businesses, investors and international organizations to act together for inclusive green growth. The two-day conference was to identify the barriers to Africa’s sustainable development and the ways to turn them into opportunities for green growth and improved livelihoods. It focused on three key areas: new financing models for green growth, sustainable urbanization and sustainable lifestyles. The forum also discussed reliable and sustainable supply in energy for Africa, achieving sustainable industrialization through the circular economy and funneling modern technology into the continent. “This year, a series of events will set the development agenda for decades to come: the Financing for Development conference in Addis Ababa, the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Agenda, and the climate change meeting in Paris at the end of the year,” said

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October 2015

Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UNEP. “The 3GF provides a timely opportunity for African stakeholders to define their priorities to feed into these important processes,” he added. “We are seeing the continent take advantage of the many green economy opportunities at its fingertips. Building on a strong endowment of natural resource and skills, Africa is poised to become the frontline of a global transition to more-inclusive green economies.” “Africa in general and Kenya in particular, holds an unparalleled green growth potential. A transition to green economy could meet many of our current challenges and create an opportunity for improved livelihoods and employment creation for all. If we want to seize this new opportunity, new, innovative, sustainable and inclusive growth and business models are needed,” said Prof. Judi Wakhungu, Cabinet Secretary for Environment, Water and Natural resources, Kenya. “We need to unlock the African and global potential for green growth. To do so, all actors must work closer together and be ‘powerful doers’. Together we can create a common green growth pathway by facilitating concrete actionoriented partnership solutions,” said Martin Lidegaard, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Denmark. “The 3GF aims to provide exactly this common space for private and public decision-makers.”■

he East African Community (EAC) Secretariat is now the host institution for a regional observatory to support more effective protected area management and biodiversity conservation in the region, made possible through a partnership recently signed with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) supported by the EU-funded Biodiversity and Protected Area Management (BIOPAMA) programme.

“The observatory will provide relevant data and information that will enhance planning, policy, and decision-making. It will support effective protected area management and biodiversity conservation within the region, in line with the mandate of the environmental sector of the EAC that is to promote co-operation in the conservation and management of natural resources including trans-boundary resources,” said Ms. WivineNtamubano, Principal Environment and Natural Resources Officer,

East African Community Secretariat. “The EAC Observatory is the first of several others planned for the Eastern and Southern African region and we are very excited about the opportunities for better decision-making that it will provide to the East African Partner States”, said Christine Mentzel, IUCN Senior Programme Officer and BIOPAMA Coordinator for the Eastern and Southern African region■

The BIOPAMA programme, financed by the 10th European Development Fund of the European Union and implemented by IUCN and partners, aims to assist countries to improve technical and institutional approaches to conserve biodiversity, and address threats to biodiversity in Africa, Caribbean and Pacific countries while also reducing poverty. An Observatory for Protected Areas and Biodiversity is being established in the East African Community Secretariat, located in Arusha, Tanzania, to provide decision- and policy-making support on protected areas and biodiversity, in particular within the landscape context in which they exist. Supported by a regional reference information system (RRIS), the Observatory will be a central access point to authoritative data on protected areas, biodiversity and related information. It will provide free and open access to global and regional data and information on thematic areas such as land-use, biodiversity, protected areas, mineral deposits and publically accessible mining, oil and gas concessions.

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October

Climate Change

Governments shift gear to deliver Paris Climate Change Agreement Climate Action by Cities, Companies and Regions Fires Up Optimism

By Ben O’Nyasimi

Governments have asked the delegates who are co-chairing the negotiations to table text in mid- that begun shaping up in July what will be the Paris agreement and what will be the supporting decisions—the so called ‘Paris Package’.

The Secretary General of the United Nations Ban Ki-Moon praised the moral leadership being demonstrated by Pope Francis, also hoping that this leadership will prove influential, if not decisive, in the upcoming Paris climate talks in November this year.

he Pope has said he hopes the document, entitled LautadoSii (Praised be),’On Care for Our Common Home’, will influence the UN conference on climate change in Paris this year.

he road map to a new universal climate agreement will step into a higher gear over the next two months as the world works towards Paris in December.

The decisions was to operationalize the ambition contained in the Paris Agreement which is aimed at deeper, more accelerated and long term global action to address climate change: namely by keeping a global temperature rise under 2 degrees Celsius while protecting the vulnerable from harmful impacts. The co-chairs text were also to make it easier for governments including ministers to identify the key political decisions that will have to be taken at and in advance of the UN climate convention conference in France. Several key ministerial meetings have been organized over the coming months including by the French Presidency of the UN climate conference. “The path to Paris is now happening on both the political and negotiating levels and with a mood of exceptional confidence and engagement—what is being managed here

The Pope steers clear His concerns over Paris Climate Change Conference

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October 2015

is no longer resistance to an agreement but complexity, enthusiasm and an understanding that every nation is playing its part,” said Christiana Figueres, Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). “The negotiations are also occurring against the backdrop of an accelerating wave

of climate action from non-state actors including cities, regions, territories and companies which is contributing confidence to the process,” she said. “Each moving part is gearing and firing up the rest to advance forward and to ensure the world remains on track to deliver in Paris,”said MsFigueres■

Pope Francis

The document underlines “an approach to ecology” to “get to the root of the present situation”, consider “not only the symptoms but also the causes of the problem”, “bring the whole human family together” and a “new lifestyle”. It places climate change within the larger framework of a global socio-economic system that promotes overconsumption while the poor not only lack the basics needed for life, but will carry the main burden of the effects of climate change, which he characterizes as the “ecological debt”. These socio-economic, environmental and moral imperatives can only give added momentum to the whole debate on the road to Paris. With respect to climate change, the Pope points out that “many of those who possess more resources and economic or political power seem mostly to be concerned with masking the problems or concealing their symptoms, simply making efforts to reduce some of the negative impacts of climate change. However, many of these symptoms indicate that such effects will continue to worsen if we continue with current models of production and consumption”. He stresses the urgent need to develop new policies for access to renewable energy, energy conservation in transportation and energy efficiency in buildings■

EnviroConserveAFRICA July/August 2015

World Environment Day

Rakai District Hosted World Environment Day By Staff Writer

very year, the 5th of June provides the world community with an opportunity to take action to ensure the future of our planet is safer for the present and future generations.WED is the United Nations’ principal vehicle for encouraging worldwide awareness and positive action to care for our environment. In Uganda, the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) as the principal agency charged with the responsibility of coordinating, monitoring, regulating and supervising environmental management in the country, uses the WED celebrations as a platform to raise national awareness of the need to take positive environmental action and serving as the ‘people’s day’ for doing something positive for the environment. The global theme of this year’s World Environment Day was ‘Seven Billion Dreams. One Planet’, while the national theme is, “35 Million People.Limited Resources. Consume with Care.” These two themes serve as a wake-up call for Uganda to take better stewardship of its natural resources to safeguard the survival of the present and that of future generations. The well-being of humanity, the environment, and the functioning of the world’s economy ultimately depend upon the responsible management of the planet’s natural resources. The theme for this year’s World Environment Day celebrations focused on sustainable lifestyles, and the slogan is “Seven Billion Dreams. One Planet. Consume with Care.” It highlighted the fact that human aspirations in search of social and economic empowerment have led to people consuming far more natural resources than what the

planet can sustainably provide. This is putting humanity at risk of hunger (food insecurity), drought, disease and death. Statistics show that by 2050, if current consumption and production patterns remain the same and with a rising world population expected to reach 9.6 billion, we will need three planets to sustain our ways of living and consumption. In Uganda, according to provisional results from the National Population and Housing Census 2014 conducted by Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS), Uganda’s population had grown by 10.7 million people from 24.4 million people in 2012 to 34.9 million people by 2014. It is estimated that at an average annual growth rate of 3.03 per cent, Uganda’s population projected to increase to 35.0 million in 2015 and to 47.4 million in 2025. Thus the adopted national theme for WED 2015 is “35 Million People, Limited Resources, Consume with Care.” Currently, the majority of the population in Uganda depends on subsistence and rainfed agriculture. 90 percent of them also rely on wood fuel as a source of energy. At this projected population growth is bound to exert more pressure on the existing natural resources which calls for adoption of sustainable production and consumption patterns. A number of multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs) have been signed by Government of Uganda to strengthen environmental protection. These include, among others, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Convention to Combat Desertification and the Convention on Biological Diversity. These present enormous opportunities for a greener economy which can deliver

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October 2015

H.E. President - Yoweri K. Museveni addressing young environmentalists in Kampala numerous benefits in addressing food, energy and water security in order to achieve sustainable development. Government has also put in place a number of policies, legal and institutional frameworks, to address environmental degradation and climate change. However, there is need for renewed commitment to effectively implement and translate these policies in to real action on ground. Great focus is need to protect the natural resources we enjoy – our wetlands, lakes, rivers, and forests; wildlife habitats and abundant farmland. There is need also to promote home-grown solutions – more so, solutions that put people at the centre of environment and natural resource protection. By harnessing homegrown solutions, and preserving the natural resources that make Uganda the Pearl of Africa, it will be evident that sound environmental policies can go hand-in hand with economic development. “As the UN, our interventions over the past year have amplified efforts by government and other partners to support the country to climate proof its development, notably: Revision of the National Environment Management Policy to integrate climate change, disaster risk reduction, electronic

waste management and oil and gas.

environmental efforts.

A Biomass Energy Strategy, E- Waste Management Strategy have been developed, while a 24- hour National Emergency and Coordination Centre (NECOC), is place, under the leadership of the Office of the Prime Minister. Issues papers on ENR and Climate Change were prepared for the NDP II with our support, and a payment for ecosystem services fund established as part of promoting an Ecosystem Based Adaptation approach to climate change”, Said MrsAhunnaEziakonwa- Onochie, United Nationa Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in Uganda.

The UN system in Uganda remains committed to ensuring that development is risk-informed, and to seeing that environmental protection continues to be prioritised in national development”, MrsAhunnaEziakonwa-Onochie concluded. Rakai district was chosen to host WED

2015 as a district that has communities surrounding Lake Victoria Basin, which has unique environmental opportunities and challenges. Its increasing population is having a direct effect of increasing pressure on the natural resources identified by deforestation, charcoal burning, wetland depletion, poor fishing methods and large stretches of land are water stressed �

“As we prepare for the post-2015 agenda, it is our hope that these efforts will propel us forward in attaining sustainable development and Vision2040. We are grateful for the excellent partnership with Government of Uganda, and especially, the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) which is leading the National celebrations that took place in Rakai district. We are also appreciative of the collaboration of other development partners, the civil society, private sector, academia and most importantly, the people of Uganda – who are at the centre of our EnviroConserveAFRICA July/August 2015

Business & Environment

TORORO CEMENT LIMITED: PROMOTING ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY AND DEVELOPMENT THROUGH CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

Tororo Cement; Environmental, Community Press Release By Tororo Cement

ar-sighted organizational leaders recognize that lasting success must be built on credible business practices and the prevention of such actions as labour exploitation. In contrast, today’s competitive business organizations are finding it necessary to operate in a socially responsible manner to meet the needs of customers, consumers, governments, associations and the general public. This is to signify that, sustainable business and/ or lasting success for organizations means not only providing products and services that satisfy the customer, and doing so without jeopardizing labour practices and the environment, but also operating in a socially responsible manner. Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainable Development have now emerged as strategic elements of overall firm management extending the role of environmental responsibility well beyond the traditional scope of the Environmental Manager alone. In recent times, corporate environmental responsibility has evolved and expanded to cover substantially more than pollution prevention, waste minimization and legal compliance. Consequently, environmental management, once considered a sunken-cost, driven by legal compliance and liability, is now integrated as a survival as well as a competitive strategy. As a result,

business enterprises of all sizes and types are now increasingly able to achieve a wide range of benefits from their efforts to design or re-design their products, services and operations while taking environmental concernsand Social Responsibility into consideration. Tororo Cement Limited (TCL),the largest Cement Manufacturing Company in Uganda with a Cement Production Capacity of 1,800,000 metric tons per year (MTY) is cognizant that innovation is required to meet society’s demands, and that efficiency, market share, risk management, brand value and other core business functions are as critical to good environmental performance as they are to sustainable competition. Subsequently, we have refined our approach to various elements of our environmental programmes including setting in-house goals that focus on environment, organizational governance, community involvement and development, labour practices and human rights, managing supplier/consumer relationsand reporting our commitments and environmental performance in relation tocorporate social responsibility. Our Company has been able to move from good intentions to good actions through the following agenda:-.

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October 2015

BIOGAS PROGRANMME In partnership with Uganda Manufacturers Association (UMA) and the Germany Agency for International Co-operation (GIZ) and Heifer Project International, Tororo Cement Limited designed and launched an energy efficiency programme focusing on biogas production. The programme was designed for the local communities in Tororo District, Eastern Ugandawhere the factory is situated. Forty four (44) biogas plants worthy UGX 70,000,000 have been set up in four subcounties of Tororo. This social investment has enabledthe local communitiesto access modern cooking facilities in their homesteads. In addition, it has provided lighting for common purpose in homes and generation of bio-slurry, an excellent organic fertilizer. Lighting through biogas energy has reduced household expenditure on hydro electricity power (HEP) and Kerosene, resulting in increased household incomes. This has further enabled the beneficiaries to afford better healthcare, better education for their children and providing light for reading thereby increasing the literacy levels in these local communities.

Health, and Education Social Development Projects Biogas-slurry, a rich organic fertilizer, has promoted modern organic farming resulting in improvedcropand animal yields. This has led to improved food security in the area. Importantly, this programme has reduced the communities’ over dependence on wood fuel resulting in improved forest cover, rainfall patterns, reduced atmospheric air pollution and eventual protection of the ozone layer. TREE AND BANANA PLANTATION PROGRAMME Tororo Cement has designed a tree planting programme in Tororo, Kapchorwa and Moroto where it obtains its raw materials. About 26,562 trees seedlings have been planted in the three Districts. Specifically, Tororo has taken a share of 16,562 while the 10,000 has been shared between Kapchorwa and Moroto. On the other hand, over 120 acres of Matooke have been established around the factory premises.This programme has promoted increased food security for local communities and environmental conservation in these areas. TRANSPORT AND ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT PROGRAMME Transport is a key factor in socio-economic development.Conscious of this, TCL has extended support to the community in the North by constructing 3 bridges in Moroto

District facilitating an easy inter-connection between the East and North of the Country. This programme has boosted the region’s economic activities including better transport, agriculture and education services due to easy accessibility. The company also assists in maintaining the roads in Amudat by fueling and providing a wheel loader to the district when carrying out road repairs in addition to contributing fuel for the Ministry of Works and Transport grader during road works. In terms of labour practices, we have since 2009 given the onus of excavating marble to the local community while giving minimum oversight. This has provided employment opportunities and increased household income to the local community. EDUCATION PROGRAMME

AND

HEALTH

Education is the single most powerful tool that can be used to change the world while Health is Wealth. For us to be able to realize any change we need people who understand the circumstances that surround our environment and, to be able to create more wealth, we need healthy people. Tororo Cement is keen on this. We have supported the education sector in our areas of operation by constructing primary and secondary schools. Specifically, a two-classroom block was constructed at

Kawowo Secondary School in Kapchorwa, and a four-classroom block put up in Moroto. In addition, three students from Moroto have been supported from primary six upto University level through the office of the Prime Minister. Two have already completed and one is soon completing. In terms of health, we have constructed a community Health Centre III in Opedede Village in Osukuru Sub-County, Tororo District which now serves over 5,000 people around the local community. The company has also distributed mosquito nets to the local communities in Amudat, Kapchorwa and Tororo including providing a Mobile Clinic Van in Moroto and Mattresses to Tororo Government Hospital. This has boosted education and health service provision in these areas. Our approach and effort to operate in a socially responsible manner that society increasingly demands, has yielded us immense benefits. There is now a high sense of identity and belonging between the community and the company, importantly, we enjoy increased market share in the East African region and beyond.Tororo Cement Limited will continue to make a positive contribution to the world we live in ■

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October

Business & Environment

ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY: SCOUL

EMBRACES ZERO DISCHARGE OF ITS DISTILLERY EFFLUENT

www.mehtagroup.com/sugar.html

Overview of the Bio-compost Production area

Over view of the Lagoon for retaining the Distillery Effluent and the Pump House

Sugar Corporation of Uganda Limited (SCOUL) was established in the year 1924 and is one of the leading sugar manufacturing companies in Uganda. Since its inception, SCOUL is one of the players in the development of Uganda’s economy and is also one of the largest employers in the country.The company is always focused on the product quality, its people and sustainability of its resources. Our sugar production capacity is 50,000 MT p.a. and Molasses generated produces over 9 million liters p.a of alcohol. The ethanol process produces 109.5 million liters p.a Environmental Sustainability and Compliance SCOUL was the first sugar company to acquire ISO 9001 certification, and is among the few ISO 14001 Environmental

Management System certified companies. The company is committed to clean and healthy environment through compliance with all applicable environmental laws and regulations. To emphasis this commitment, the company adopted cleaner production technologies, to minimize waste, to enhance resource use and efficiency, to prevent pollution, reduce environmental risks and liabilities, and among others to achieve greater competiveness. SPENT WASH Treatment Process Distillery spent wash is the unwanted residual liquid waste generated during alcohol production and pollution caused by it is one of the most critical environmental issue, having extremely high COD of (120,000 – 130,000) mg/l and BOD (60,000

- 65,000) mg/l. If discharged untreated or partially treated the effluent mightfind access to watercourses and with its characteristic of unpleasant odor it poses a serious threat to the water quality in the area it is discharged. A number of clean up technologies have been put into practice around the world. At SCOUL, we have put up Bio-digester for treatment of SPENT WASH. The spent wash is directed into a 110 million litre bio-digester for biological treatment. This undergoes 80% BOD reduction and 70% COD reduction. Biogas is also generated after the treatment and used in the boiler to generate steam which runs the distillery. Bio-Compost Production The effluent from the digester after treatment cannot be released into the environment because it has high colour content of 20,638 PtCo, BOD

of 6,000 mg/l, COD of 36,000 mg/l and TSS of 22,700 mg/l, and this is against the National Standard of effluent discharge into the environment. SCOUL being environmentally sensitive and compliant company, the management made various consultations and a new technology that is ZERO DISCHARGE was introduced which involves utilization of the highly concentrated effluent with press mud obtained from sugar processed to produce an organic fertilizer called BIO-COMPOST. What Bio Compost is? This is a dark brown substance obtained after mixing press mud, boiler ash, bagasse and distillery effluent.The Bio compost cycle takes 65 days after which it is ready for application in the sugar cane plantations as manure.

Spraying and Tilling activity by the Aero Tiller

Test Results Obtained From NARO lab’

• • • • • • • • •

OC….. Organic Carbon (%) OM ….Organic Matter (%) N…. Nitrogen (%) P … Phosphorus (mg/l) Ca ….Calcium (mg/l) Mg…. Magnesium (mg/l) K ….Potassium (mg/l) S….. Soluble Sulphur (mg/l) BCV – Bio Compost Values

www.mehtagroup.com/sugar.html

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October 2015

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October

Business & Environment

Environment

Crown Beverages embraces environmental sustainability to enhance its business competitiveness

Why African countries need to transition to the green economy By Staff Writer

adopting technological solutions. A change in attitude

Joseph Tumanyane,the Environmental Officer at Crown Beverages spoke about the company ’s sustainability initiatives, in commemoration of this year’s World Environment Day. Below are the, Q and A

Q; Crown Beverages was recently recognized

ever since?

can be able to keep RECP maintained and hence its

Q;World Environment Day was recently

A:The capital investment to a modern ETP has earned as

•

Good housekeeping;

celebrated, what are some of the ways Crown

praise from many organisations. Other awards we have

•

Input Substitution;

Beverages Limited has taken to conserve the

received have been:

•

Better Process Control;

environment?

•

Equipment Modification;

•

Technology Change;

•

On-site recovery and reuse;

•

Production of a useful by-product; and

•

Product Modification.

and awarded for constructing a shs4.6 billion water treatment plant in 2013, has CBL been recognized for any environmental awards

WASTE WATER MANAGEMENT AWARD on Resource Efficiency and cleaner Production, from UCPC (Uganda Cleaner Production Centre) in

A: CBL has under taken “THE ECO-BENEFITS

2013;

PROGRAMME”, which provides a thorough investigation into the production processes and all other activities of a

•

Efficiency and cleaner from UCPC in 2014;

company. Processes, products, technologies, materials, water, and energy use, are critically studied in order to

WATER USE MANAGEMENT AWARD, on Resource

•

WATER USE AND ENERGY MANAGEMENT

minimize the generation of non-product outputs such as

AWARD, on Resource Efficiency and cleaner from

emissions and waste, thus increasing the overall efficiency

UCPC in 2014; and

of the enterprise or company.

•

CHEMICAL LEASING GLOBAL AWARD, from

Through the ECO-BENEFITS cleaner production

UNIDO (United Nations Industrial Development

programme, economic, ecological and social benefits

Organization based in Brussels) in 2014.

can be realized by CBL.

and training on the part of company directors, managers and employees is crucial to gaining the most from Cleaner Production. Under the following activities CBL reputation:

Q; Crown Beverages contribution to the nation’s and global environmental conservation is highly appreciated, what are the long term plans for environmental conservation? A: Crown Beverages appreciates the benefits of embracing environmental sustainability in its business operations and therefore the company has earmarked to

CBL has undertaken several ways, including but not

Q; Most companies are encouraged to recycle

limited to the 4R’s, Reduction, Re-use, Recycling and

waste and employ energy efficient technology.

Recovery of materials ( resources) as a means of

What has CBL done to abide by this?

sustainability but also to maintain competitiveness. The

to that aims at continual improvement.

A: CBL embraces modern technologies like recycling

to achieve in this regards:

These are some of the activities and process CBL is

and re-use therefore all the items like plastics, glass, and

engaged in:

others generated as wastes are recycled here in Uganda,

•

Rain harvesting as a way to control surface runoff

Tanzania and Kenya. Re-usable items like boxes, gunny

that leads to erosion

bags, Jeri cans are put to their respective alternative

Changing technologies by investing from wet

uses, too. Hence this reduces on the wastes generated

conveyor lubrication to dry lubrication on lines; a

during our production activitiesthat may find their way

change that significantly reduced the volumes of

to the environment.

prevention, minimization and controlling pollution, more

•

water used. • •

Control, fixing flush guns and repairing of leakages

Q:As a recipient on the Resource Efficiency

in the whole pipe systems that reduce water loss.

Cleaner Production awards in 2014, what is

Chemical leasing that has optimized chemical usage

CBL doing to maintain that reputation?

and efficiency hence reduced wastes.

undertake several goals not only to maintain its business following are some of the plans the company has set out •

Improved technology of waste disposal and space

•

Large-scale rain water recovery.

•

Change from diesel motorized forklifts to gas ones.

•

Carbon offset. The company wants to invest in large-scale tree planting in conjunction with the government.

•

Investing in renewable energies; Biogas and solar in future.

•

Employing modern technologies in-house to promote efficiency.

•

Continuous training of staff on environmental matters.

Re-use of some process water.

A: It is important to stress that Cleaner Production is

•

Treating all the liquid waste generated from

about attitudinal as well as technological change. In

processes before discharge.

many cases, the most significant Cleaner Production

of wastes leading to good environmental management

benefits can be gained through lateral thinking without

practices �

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October 2015

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) regional director for Africa, Mr Mounkaila Goumandakoye, addressed the media on how African countries can expand economies to cater for rapidly growing populations while using natural resources sustainably and ensuring peaceful coexistence between communities. The Regional Director said the UNEP is reaching out to the wider public and to provide more analysis on the environment and its importance for this continent and its population. Indeed, “we are having this year an important theme, which is more related to the issue of sustainable consumption and production: “Seven billion dreams, one planet, consume with care”.

management by glass crushing on site.

•

orld Environment Day is commemorated on June 5 every year. In 1972, when it was first marked, the harm that poisonous chemicals were causing to the natural environment were the immediate concern. Forty-three years later, climate change and sustainability also loom large, though the earlier concerns remain.

All these are aimed at elimination, reduction, controlling

He said, “we have reached worldwide, seven billion, but in reality, in terms of our footprint, the use of natural capital or natural resources to cater for the needs of the population, we moved from 0.5 of (our) planet in 1950 to now 1.25 of the planet, meaning that we are using more than what the planet can really provide to us”. “So we cannot continue business as usual, he said. This is why we need to see how to improve, in terms of our production and

consumption and our lifestyles, so that we can use sustainably the resources available to us”. On how governments can ensure sustainable development and the private sector businesses taking environment seriously, Mr. Mounkaila said, “From UNEP’S perspective, and also based on the different analyses that we have made, the important approach that we can use, particularly when it comes to Africa, where (there are now) more than one billion (people and) moving to two billion, is to build in our economies a green approach. So what we are really proposing is for countries to engage in transitioning to a green economy. That will ensure that we use sustainably the resources available, so that despite the growing population, we’ll be in a position to satisfy the needs of livelihood, continue to maintain the GDP, which is relatively high in terms of the growth for Africa, and ensure in future that resources are not being destroyed.

UNEP regional director for Africa, Mr Mounkaila Goumandakoye The second one is mainly to work with the country in terms of developing concrete action plans for a green economy and also be in a position to provide the capacitybuilding needs, because this is a new area where in fact many countries do not have the expertise in particular aspects, so we are providing this. The final support is to work closely with all the partners like the African Development Bank to provide the implementation means in terms of concrete programmes on the ground”, he said.

On Kenya’s sustainability challenges

UNEP support to countries on green economy

Mr. Mounkaila said, “Kenya, like in many African countries, has many challenges, particularly related to the fact that it has a very rapid population growth, very high urbanization rates so its cities are growing but not in the ideal conditions, with many slums, and also living conditions becoming very difficult. In a nutshell the case of Kenya I see the biggest challenge, particularly in terms of the availability of resources.

Mr Mounkaila said, “there are three types of support UNEP offers to countries. The first one is policy advisory services, providing analysis to the countries and technical support in terms of wde some kind of policy framework that the country can use in terms of transition to the green economy.

He said, “for instance in 1950, in Kenya had on average 9.6 hectares per person in terms of land and what it can provide, forests, water, biodiversity, etc. With the current population growth we are expecting that when we reach 2050, instead of 9.6

We have been working with a number of countries — now I can say more than 15 — and even the continent at the ministerial level. Ministers of environment but also ministers of finance have really decided to green the key sectors of the development of this continent”.

hectares it should be 0.3 hectares� EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October 2015

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October

Environment

World can prevent Financial and Environmental Costs, New Environment Report Says

ities and Municipalities Lead the Way in Innovation and Adaptability Says the New Handbook Launched at Expo Milano by UNEP Chief, Achim Steiner and Italian Minister of Environment Gian Luca Galletti. As the financial and environmental costs of resource depletion begin to affect economic growth worldwide, countries need to find ways to manage finite resources while meeting the needs of a growing and increasingly urban world population. By integrating sustainable consumption and production (SCP) patterns into national development planning and implementation, policy makers can make it easier and cheaper to produce goods and services more efficiently, with lower risks to humankind and the environment.

Recent research shows that improved efficiency can reduce energy demand by 50 to 80 per cent for most production and utility systems. Some 60 to 80 per cent improvements in energy and water efficiency are commercially viable in sectors such as construction, agriculture, hospitality, industry and transport. The means to achieving such efficiency gains are outlined for the first time in a guidebook by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) entitled, ‘Sustainable Consumption and Production: A Handbook for Policy Makers’, launched on the occasion of World Environment Day (WED).

efficiency gains to be made by mainstreaming SCP patterns.

The handbook contains compelling data on both the impact of unsustainable consumption and production, and the

The estimated 1.2 billion people still living in extreme poverty, depend on natural capital - the wealth derived from activities related

UNEP Chief- Achim Steiner

to nature - far more than the affluent. Those on low income count nearly a third of their wealth in natural capital, while those on high income have approximately 4 times less dependency on natural capital. Eco-system services, such as mangroves filtering water, and other ‘non-market’ goods can account for as much as 47 per cent, in India, to 90 per cent, in Brazil, of the so-called “GDP of the poor ”, highlighting their vulnerability to pollution or climate change. Sustainable consumption and production is therefore essential for improving the lives of those living in poverty. UN Under-Secretary-General and UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner said, “The last century has witnessed a rapid transformation of our relationship with the natural world, with the escalating use of natural resources leading to environmental degradation. We are now operating at about 40 per cent above the earth’s budget. If world population and consumption rates continue according to business as usual, annual global resource extraction could triple from 2000 levels to 140 billion tons by 2050.” “ We m u s t a s k o u r s e l v e s w h a t t h e consequences of this pace of consumption and trajectory will be in a world that by 2050 will have to sustain up to nine billion people”.

NEP Chief, Achim Steiner

“The last century has witnessed a rapid transformation of our relationship with the natural world” “World Environment Day provides an opportunity for governments, institutions and individuals to become agents of change. UNEP’s Handbook provides practical yet far reaching proposals to promote prosperous economies and a healthy planet for generations to come,” he added. According to the report, over the past two decades most of the economic growth came from the Asia-Pacific region, driven by a fast transition in a number of rapidly developing economies, most notably China. At the same time, over the past ten years, the prices of many natural resources have grown substantially and have also become increasingly volatile. “Decoupling economic growth from resource consumption and from environmental impacts is a way of addressing this challenge and a key concept in sustainable consumption and production,” said Mr. Steiner.

For developing countries this would mean using innovative ways to leapfrog into a green economy structure, ensuring better delivery of services and access to resources in a way that conserves their natural resource base. In developed countries, resource efficiency strategies will be highly effective, but account must be taken of how much resource extraction is outsourced from developed countries to developing countries. Both require well designed public policies, a reason why this handbook is so important. In both the developed and developing countries resource efficiency is a necessary condition for sustainable development but it needs to be complimented with systemic changes in the way we plan and develop our infrastructure and in the way we take consumption decisions. There are significant differences between the world’s regions, with Africa’s domestic material consumption being very low, at just 3.7 tonnes, reflecting a low material standard of living. In contrast, since 2000 Asia and the Pacific has been the most dynamic region both economically and in terms of resource use yet the efficiency with which materials are used has declined and population growth is now the least important driver of regional natural resource use. Latin America’s growth is linked to Asia’s boom, through the export of metals and fossil fuels to service infrastructure development and manufacturing in Asia. In Eastern and Central Asian countries the economies have rebounded, resulting in growing resource use and while the European Union countries have been leading in developing policies for sustainable resource use, which is reflected in comparably low per-capita resource use levels, this is enabled, in part, through the outsourcing of many resource and emission intensive processes to other countries. Cities have already shown that incorporating environmental protection into their policies is profitable in several ways. The EU, for example, estimates that the City of Vienna saved 44 million euro and 100,000 CO2 - between 2004 and 2007 through its ‘Ecobuy’ programme. The Namibian city of Windhoek adapted a dual piping system, reducing 5 to 7 per cent of the potable water demand.

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October 2015

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October 2015

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October

World Biodiversity

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October 2015

Company Profiles

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October

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EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October 2015

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October

Business & Environment

Its artificial aquifer recharge systems are adequate for the sub Saharan city to survive for two years without depending on ephemeral rivers. In Buenos Aires, under their ‘Plan for Sustainable Mobility’, efforts are already showing economic returns on top of environmental ones as a result of improving the transport systems and reducing commuting time by 10-25 per cent (and up to 65 per cent in some cases). The multisector Palawan Council for Sustainable Development, in the Philippines, has facilitated the introduction of a pioneering initiative to try to promote zero carbon tourism in Palawan, implementing a clearing system for new resorts. Chinese, Indian and other authorities are giving those who try to live more sustainably options, by introducing ecolabelling schemes, a system with a proven track record dating back to the 1970’s. In universities in Egypt, Kenya Tanzania, Mozambique and Mauritius, students are being educated in a program that combines sustainable lifestyle education with business development skills. Most products and services are provided by the private sector, businesses therefore play a pivotal role in society’s shift towards SCP. Companies, in contrast to customers, have knowledge of the full life cycles of their products from resource extraction of its suppliers to the environmental impact caused after the product eventually breaks or becomes obsolete, and are typically good at translating their sustainability efforts into competitive advantages Producers of laundry detergents, for example, found that developing new detergents that would be effective at lower temperatures, saved their customers money, lowered the environmental impact of their product and gave them a distinct marketing advantage.

Business & Environment

and a consortium comprising a specialist investment banker and technology service providers, with the ultimate aim of reducing dependency on fossil fuels by 60 per cent within 15 years. The programme is expected to pay for itself, after the initial investment, by savings in utility costs. The UNEP guidebook contains a rich compilation of SCP case studies from all over the world, covering policy instruments, implementation processes, monitoring and evaluation methodologies and indicators. The guidebook will assist governments and other organizations to use SCP policies and tools to realize national development goals through greater resource efficiency gains, lower production costs and job creation. Better management of consumption patterns

Collaboration has already started, examples including the International Standardization Organization, a network of national standards institutes, both public and private, from over 160 countries and Design for Sustainability. The Government of the U.S. Virgin Islands encouraged a public-private partnership between its Energy Ministry

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October 2015

through smart policies and smart living will help create a different model of economic growth, in which the needs of the many are better met by the smarter management of precious resources. By using this handbook policymakers and other institutional stakeholders will be able to integrate the concept of SCP into national development planning and create solutions for sustainable development challenges. The Handbook was launched by Achim Steiner and Gian Luca Galletti, the Minister of Environment of Italy, during a press conference at Expo Milano 2015 - the world-famous Universal Exhibition that hosted this year’s WED. The launch was followed by signing by both officials of the Milan Charter - the Expo’s manifesto on the theme “Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life.”�

Vivo Energy ganda Doing Business Responsibly

ivo Energy is the company that distributes and markets Shell branded fuels and lubricants including Shell Fuelsave Unleaded Petrol and Diesel, Shell V-Power, Shell Rimula, Shell Helix and Shell Gas among others. These products are recognized throughout the world for their superior quality and reliability. And the company takes extra effort to ensure that it delivers these products in a responsible manner. An interview with Hans Paulsen, Vivo Energy Uganda’s MD, reveals what the company is doing to protect the environment in which it operates. Q: By way of introduction tell us a bit about Vivo Energy Uganda A: Vivo Energy took over the Shell Uganda downstream business in February 2013 joining 15 other African countries. Vivo Energy comes with a lot of value addition that will reinforce our market leadership position through capital injections of over US$ 300m over the next three years in order to deliver sustainable growth across Africa. Coupled with this is that Vivo Energy continues to deliver to our customers the same superior quality Shell brands they have always enjoyed, with excellent customer

service. Shell still maintains 20% share in Vivo Energywhilst Vitol and Helios Investment Partners each hold 40%. Our customers still get the same Shell products with the same product quality and standards whilst adhering to the same industry-leading Health, Safety and Environment standards as before. We have led the petroleum industry in the area of innovation, a position we continue to hold.

Hans Paulsen- Vivo Energy Uganda, Managing Director

Q: We have read that your ambition is to become the most respected energy business in Africa. How do you intend to achieve this? A: One of our priority ambitions is in the area ofSafety, Health, Security and Environment (HSSE). Our target is“Goal Zero” which iszero harm to people, assets and our environment. It is on this principle that we do our business as well as all partnerships with our business partners. The second is to maintain the quality leadership position of our superior Shell brand through our stringent Quality Control process for all our products. Besides being the only company that provides differentiated fuels with extra benefits in Uganda, we test the quality of our product across the supply chain using our modern fueltesting lab and our mobile fuel-testing

laboratory. We remain the market leader in innovation and quality in Uganda. Lastly, we have a strong focus on Social Investment, with programmes to promote Road Safety, Education and Environment. Q: How do you protect the environment in your daily operations especially with regard to oil spillage and used oils? A: To achieve our “Goal Zero”, we set and maintain high standards on protecting the environment. At our Shell service stations, our pipes and tanks have an inbuilt leak detection mechanism to protect against any leakage of bio-carbons (fuels) into the environment. Furthermore, all Shell service stations are designed with impermeable surface such that in case of any spillage, the spillage drains off into an interceptor which ensures that the effluent that goes into the public drainage is protected from any bio-carbons going into the environment. As a practice all used oils from Shell service stations are collected by a contractor and appropriately disposed of. Lastly, we have stringent safety measure to avoid any accidents in our operations

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October

Uganda’s State Of MDGs

and have to date registered good results. However in case of an accident involving a truck carrying our fuel, we aim at minimizing harm to the environment by a quick recovery clean-up system. We also engage key stakeholders to develop partnerships in which we would promote and support further environmental protection especially in the area of waste management.

Uganda’s State Of MDGs

Q: What is your greatest concern with regard to environmental protection in your industry today? A: Our concern is mostly around ensuring that hydrocarbons are properly managed

Q:What about with regard to your products? A: I am proud to say, we were the first company to introduce unleaded fuels in Uganda because of the harmful effects of lead on the environment. This has since become an industry standard and we are proud to have set that standard. We also piloted a project to install energy saving lighting at our Shell Fuel stations and are now scaling it up to become the practice across all our sites. Q: You say Environment is one of your key focus areas in CSR. What initiatives do you have in place? A: Just like in road safety, we work closely with schools to train children on environmental care in partnership with an NGO called “Little Hands Go Green”. We train over 30 schools to inculcate a culture of environmental care among school children at that tender impressionable age. We recently organized a climate change conference at which we had children share critical messages on environmental care to the policy makers and the public. We have also invested US$ 15,000 to provide solar lighting to 20 schools’ candidate classes

such that the environment is protected by all players. Today we have about 64 registered oil marketing companies in Uganda and it is our hope that regulators can adequately mobilize all players to ensure that this is done�

Uganda’s Progress towards the attainment of MDGs

ganda has made important progress towards the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) since the last progress report was published in 2010. Most notably, the first of the 21 MDG targets – halving the proportion of people below the national poverty line – has been achieved well ahead of the 2015 deadline. The poverty gap has also reduced across all regions of the country, meaning that individuals below the poverty line are less poor today than in the past. Economic growth has been closely linked to an expansion in more secure and productive forms of employment for poorer households and has therefore benefited Ugandans across the income distribution. The share of the workforce in wage employment continues to increase, even though the majority of opportunities remain in the informal sector, and population growth and improved education attainment have resulted in high youth unemployment. There has been a substantial reduction in hunger and under-nutrition – since 1995 the share of underweight children has been reduced by half. Following a drive to expand malaria prevention and control measures, the heavy burden imposed by the disease is beginning to be rolled back. Access to affordable essential drugs through public health facilities and treatment for HIV/AIDS for those who need it has also improved significantly. Improvements in child health outcomes have recently registered a marked acceleration, with the underfive mortality rate falling by 34% between 2006 and 2011. Uganda remains on track to meet the target for access to safe water and sanitation, driven by substantial improvements in rural areas. Government is stepping up numerous efforts to address those areas (MDG indicators) in which progress have been slow. The MDGs in which progress has been below expectations include the following; • The primary school completion rate

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October 2015

has increased slightly, but the pace of progress is insufficient to enable all Ugandan children to complete the full course of primary education by 2015. Concerns regarding education quality and poor learning outcomes persist, although basic literacy is gradually improving. While gender parity in primary education has been achieved, progress at the secondary and tertiary levels has slowed. • Despite significant improvements in skilled assistance at delivery, maternal mortality remains a big challenge with many deaths occurring more than a day after the birth. • Past gains in the fight against HIV/ AIDS have not been sustained, with a disturbing recent increase in new infections. The percentage of people with comprehensive knowledge of HIV/ AIDS transmission has increased but remains low especially among the 15-24

age group. • There are also disturbing trends relating to the loss of environmental resources, such as reduced forest cover and declining soil fertility. Rapid urban growth has the potential of relieving environmental pressures, but has to be well-managed, especially given the rapid pace at which it is happening. In the education sector, several quality initiatives and policy reforms have been undertaken in recent years, including a revised lower primary curriculum and customized performance targets for school leaders. There has been major progress in the delivery of health services, including dramatic improvements in drug availability resulting from strengthened supply chain management by the National Medical Stores and Government’s medicine grant to private not-for-profit providers. The training and recruitment of additional health workers

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October

Plastic Waste Management

has facilitated the delivery of maternal health interventions, with skilled attendance at birth improving significantly over recent years. Further progress relies partly on interventions outside the health sector. Government’s investment in the rural road network, for instance, can improve access to emergency obstetric care and reduce the large share of maternal deaths that result from complications more than a day after delivery. To match the recent improvements in access to treatment for HIV/AIDS, Government is revitalizing the prevention strategies responsible for the remarkable progress achieved in the 1990s. Declining forest cover reflects encroachment by agricultural land and the current reliance on biomass to meet the population’s energy needs. This is being addressed through rural electrification and other strategies to diversify economic activity away from agriculture. The Ministry of Water and Environment is also supporting the establishment of fastgrowing bio-energy plantations for fuelwood and charcoal production. To improve the living conditions of urban dwellers and to realise the huge development potential of urbanization, Government is investing in its urban planning capacity, and the computerisation of the land registry – finalised in early 2013 – will improve the security of land tenure and encourage investment in the housing market.

Drivers of MDG achievement in Uganda With the 2015 MDG deadline fast approaching and a growing consensus that the post-2015 agenda should pay greater attention to the root causes of development, this fourth MDG report seeks to identify the underlying factors affecting progress towards the MDGs in Uganda. In-depth analysis was undertaken using Uganda’s most-recent household surveys. This evidence indicates that MDG achievement is intimately tied to the expansion of economic opportunities. Household income is a strong predictor of almost all the MDG outcomes, particularly access to sanitation, child health and progression to higher levels of education.

Social service provision may not always be the policy instrument best targeted to accelerate MDG achievement. Government spending on social services is found to have been a relatively weak driver of past progress towards the MDGs. Larger improvements in the MDGs are often associated with public investment in physical infrastructure, such as rural feeder roads. The effectiveness of social sector spending is undermined by inadequate complementary infrastructure – poor-quality roads, for example, make public services less accessible and therefore less effective in improving MDG outcomes. Public infrastructure investment is also found to be an important driver of household income growth, with knock-on implications for the other MDGs. The structure of local economies emerges as another critical factor – the prevalence of non-farm economic activities is important for income poverty as well as other MDG outcomes such as under-five mortality.

Uganda’s Post-2015 Development Agenda The report assesses Uganda’s options for accelerating progress towards the MDGs up to 2030. Given that MDG progress is closely related to the expansion of economic opportunities, the linkages between human and economic development are explored within an economy-wide framework. Implementation of Government’s longterm development strategy – the recently launched Vision 2040 – is found to have far-reaching implications for the country’s human development trajectory. Policy simulations suggest that implementing the Vision 2040 will double the rate of poverty reduction. Other MDGs can be achieved between six and 10 years earlier. Investment in physical infrastructure is at the core of Government’s strategy to deliver Vision 2040. The simulation results illustrate that improved infrastructure can havelarge economic and human returns and will have the largest long-run impact if stepped up as quickly as possible. A temporary increase in foreign borrowing to frontload public investment could help make this possible. Maximizing the rate of progress will require a significant increase in foreign borrowing

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October 2015

within the next few years. External financing can then be reduced from the mid-2020s as domestic tax revenue, efficiency savings and oil and gas royalties increase. The simulations indicate that this financing strategy will not increase the level of public debt in 2030, but will accelerate human development progress and enhance the country’s long-term economic prospects. The Vision 2040 aims to expand modern renewable energy generation and targeted support for tradable sectors such as agriculture and manufacturing. Simulations indicate that all of these interventions have large potential to boost economic productivity and the MDG outcomes, but the agricultural sector is likely to be the most critical for sustainable human progress. There is large scope, in this regard, to enhance agricultural productivity by providing support to research, provision of quality seeds through seed multiplication and certification, extension services, improving disease control, improving the land tenure system and soil fertility management. This will help to release labour from the agricultural sector and relieve pressure on the country’s finite natural resource base. Agricultural productivity growth and support for agro-processing will spur urbanization and have large positive spillovers for higher-value activities, which can place the economy on a new, more-rapid and greener growth trajectory. As illustrated earlier, realization of the Vision 2040 is necessary to maximise Uganda’s progress towards the MDGs. Achieving this goal requires continued focus on both social and economic (productive) sectors. Current evidence shows that in Uganda today, human development returns of additional investments in physical infrastructure outweigh those to additional social sector spending by a significant margin. Accelerated progress towards our MDG target will therefore require that infrastructure projects are implemented quickly and effectively while at the same time ensuring value for money in social sector spending�

Rwenzori Bottling Company

breaking new grounds through Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives in Plastic Waste collection and recycling

lastic continues to be the preferred packaging material for many consumers today. However, due to irresponsible disposal, the material poses a risk of environmental degradation and its related outcomes. Plastic waste constitutes at least 40 per cent of waste in Uganda today. There are over 40 bottled water manufacturing companies in Uganda and other carbonated drinks manufacturers using PET bottles for packaging their products. This is coupled with other household products that are packaged plastics and containers. Kampala alone produces on average 177 tonnes of plastic a day according to records from Kampala City Council Authority. KCCA manages to collect on average 5 tonnes of plastic a day.

who use PET like other water bottlers and carbonated drinks manufacturers,” Jeremy Melvin, the General Manager of Rwenzori Bottling Company said.

has 1 to 3 people at their store/collection points, also, big suppliers have between 20 and 30 collectors who pick the plastics and sell them to the PRI suppliers.”

“Other plastic collections totaled to 775,675kg. These constitute HDPE Blow (Jerry cans), HDPE/PP Injection (buckets, basins, plates, cups, Nomi/Omo containers, crates, chairs among others. Non PET plastics make up about 35% of total recycled plastics.”

The company last year paid out Shs1.6 billion to suppliers.

The company ’s total collections for April 2014-April 2015 were 2,041,266 kilogrammes.

PRI collects, transports, sorts and processes waste plastic into flake, which is then sold locally to companies, such as Victoria Nile Plastics and Nice House of Plastics

Collection figures for F15 (period April 2014-2015)

It is in this regards that Rwenzori Bottling Company, the leading in water bottlingcompany in Uganda set up a plastic recycling plant under its corporate social responsibility arm, Plastic Recycling Industries (PRI) as it is popularly called and the largest plastic recycling industry in Uganda. Collections Vs Production Inaugurated in December 2006, the company collects on average 5,600 kilogrammes of plastic waste daily, which is recycled into plastic resins. “Last year alone, our PET collection was 130% compared to Rwenzori Bottling Company’s PET issued to the market. This is to say we collected 100% of all plastic waste we sent out to the market and did some clean up on behalf of other bottlers

PRI is also involved in public awareness campaigns on plastic waste management. This is being done through workshops and seminars; conducted in schools, hospitals, institutions and communities in Kampala and surrounding areas. A total of 100 workshops have been conducted so far and 5,000 people have been sensitized on plastic waste management.

or exported to Asia and Europe to plastic manufacturing industries. According to Onapito disposal of plastic waste remains the major challenge towards plastic waste management and the is because public is not sensitized. Job creation While in a bid to protect the environment, plastic recycling industries has created 600 plus jobs. “We have 46 permanent employees at PRI, 15 of whom are women. We have over 140 permanent suppliers (40 per cent women),” OnapitoEkomoloit, the Corporate Affairs Director of Rwenzori says. “Each supplier

James Ogwech, the production manager of PRI encouraged the public to dispose of plastic waste in designated trash bins. “This initiative needs a concerted effort. With the increasing amounts of plastic waste in Uganda, all intervention is needed to mitigate the anticipated devastating effects of plastic waste to the environment,” he says� EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October

Plastic Waste Management

Epsilon Uganda with NEMA in a plastic bags waste cleanup exercise in a Kampala suburb

lastic waste management is one of the major challenges facing many nations around the world and therefore relevant authorities responsible for environmental regulation are tasked to sensitize and raise awareness about the importance proper disposal of plastics, reuse, and recycling as best options in the management of such wastes. Epsilon (U) Ltd in one of its efforts to promote environmental sustainability through proper waste management recently participated in a cleanup exercise in Banda a Kampala suburb. The waste management team of Epsilon Uganda together with officials from NEMA and some volunteers from the community teamed up to conduct the cleanup exercise at Banda in comemoration of this years world environmenta day.The cleanup exercise was part of the detailed programme set out by NEMA to sensitize the general public on the harmful effects of

plastic bags on the environment. Epsilon Uganda undertakes various waste handling activities, which include but not limited to; Waste collection and transportation, solid waste treatment at the company’s licensed facility and hazardous waste disposal at designated facilities in Uganda.

statutory and regulatory requirements;

The company carries out its activities and

team of highly qualified staff.

services in accordance with internationally

Epsilon Uganda Limited is a privately owned

recognized approaches to solid waste

Ugandan company is not only engaged in

management, which include; source

waste management, but also has interestin

reduction and reuse, recycling, composting,

construction works, liquefied petroleum

energy recovery, treatment and disposal.

gas and human resource sourcing and

Being an ISO certified company, Epsilon

placement. The company, established in

Uganda assures high quality service

1997 and registered in 2002, currently

delivery, performed by healthy and

employs categories of highly skilled, semi-

safe workers through environmentally

skilled and unskilled labor �

adequate implementation of its integrated quality, health, safety andenvironment (QHSE) management system based on ISO 9001, OSHAS 18001 and ISO 14001 standard requirements; and high level of professionalism exhibited by its dedicated

sustainable methods. This is achieved through; strict adherence to national

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October 2015

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October

EnviroConserveAFRICA August/October 2015