The impact of population density on forest management and use in Uganda

Abstract

To investigate the relationship between population density and forest management and use in Uganda, this study focuses on agricultural communities in four districts representing contrasting population levels, forest resources and relationships between forest cover and population density. The fieldwork, conducted in June - October 1996, employed a variety of data-collection methods, including interviews with local authorities and community members and a simplified version of participatory rural appraisal techniques. The majority of respondents planted trees for fuelwood, poles and fruits, mainly for subsistence use. Generating income from trees was not a major objective. Most farmers in the study communities were poor and had little education. Respondents reported having little knowledge on tree-planting practices, and they lacked planting materials. Population density was found to be negatively related to the size and number of landholdings, to long-term land acquisition and to tree-planting activity, whereas it was positively associated with land fragmentation and land disputes. Short-term access to land, and conditional access in the case of women, discourages the planting of trees, which mature slowly. Land fragmentation increases the distances that farmers must travel to reach their parcels of land, and the long distances prevent farmers from tending to planted trees effectively. Thus, Uganda's high population density, which is likely to increase, appears to be having an adverse effect on forest management.