Overview : 1.0 BACKGROUND Solid Biomass is the main sources of energy used for cooking by over 80% of Uganda’s population. The country’s population is growing and recent studies indicate that the demand for charcoal is increasing at an estimated rate of 6% per annum. Such trends can lead to degradation of the forests and woodlands from where the biomass resources are harvested. The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development (MEMD) with support from UNDP/GEF recently launched the National Biomass Energy Strategy (NBEST) and a project titled; “Addressing Barriers to Adoption of Improved Charcoal Production Technologies and Sustainable Land Practices through an Integrated Approach” or the Green Charcoal Project. The NBEST provides a framework for sustainable management and utilization of biomass resources in order to meet the country’s energy needs both in the short-term and long-term. Relatedly, the Green Charcoal Project aims to promote improved technologies for sustainable charcoal production and enhance sustainable supply of feedstock for charcoal production in the pilot districts of Kiryandongo, Mubende, Nakaseke and Kiboga. The project’s intervention is in three areas namely: - Sustainable Forest Management through reforestation and restoration of degraded areas;
- Sustainable Charcoal Production through promotion of improved charcoal production technologies and utilization of charcoal fines for briquette production including demonstration of best practices in storage, transportation and packaging of charcoal;
- Sustainable Land Management and Conservation Agriculture;
The project intends to scale up these initiatives through the development of a Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Action (NAMA) on promoting a Sustainable Charcoal Value Chain in Uganda. Currently the following has been achieved with regard to the development of a Charcoal NAMA; - A NAMA study on Sustainable Charcoal Production in Uganda( 2010);
- Fuel Switch; Technology Switch and Methane Capture in the Charcoal sector in Uganda standardized baseline (2010).
The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development in partnership with UNDP is therefore seeking the services of an experienced Consultant to provide technical support to the Green Charcoal Project by preparing a detailed full project proposal for the Sustainable Charcoal Value Chain NAMA in Uganda based on the current documents available. |