Carbon trade is also known as emissions trading, a market-based approach allowing countries or organizations to buy and sell carbon credits.
According to environmental experts, a carbon credit represents one ton of greenhouse gas emissions avoided, reduced, or removed from the environment that can be traded to generate revenue.
Planting trees as a farming activity in Uganda for both business and conservation purposes has been embraced by people in different parts of Uganda, fragmented with mostly small-scale farmer projects.
Carbon tree farm investors in Uganda are taking advantage of a new money-making opportunity of investing in plating indigenous trees that are targeted for carbon sequencing for carbon credits.
Speaking to tree farmers in Hoima, and Masindi districts in the Albertine region located in Mid-Westetn Uganda, they had a common objective of ensuring that they get paid for selling carbon credits from indigenous trees to local and international clients.
During a visit to the indigenous tree farmer in Hoima, Beatrice Ahimbisibwe, says that she conceived the idea of tree farming after witnessing tree farmers receiving million-shilling payments in carbon selling. She adds that when she started planting trees is 2003, it took her less than 10 years to start selling carbon credits which she says has made it possible to sustain her family.
"I embarked on different indigenous tree species including Tanaria, Prynas, Fagara, and Ficas. These are some of the species recommended for carbon credits. I started growing indigenous trees in 2003, but after a few years I started selling carbon credit and I can now have a sustainable family and I have a decent home. People are coming from different places to see how we able to do it” she says
According to Ahimbisibwe, tree planting takes dedication and some patience for a few years but adds that the benefits are many including cash, environmental conservation, and soul erosion.
"I was a subsistence farmer before I dedicated my time to a tree farming project and started planting native and naturalized trees on my piece of land which eventually after being patient for a few years yielded through sequencing carbon dioxide, while the trees also helped curb soil erosion and keep waterways free from siltation," she said
She further said that she visited different farmers who belonged to similar businesses of carbon selling to learn new skills. After the visits, she said that she was advised to join a tree farm group to access a wider market. She joined Hoima Tree For Global Benefit (TGB) Farmers groups to which in 2023 they received a UGX 17 Million from carbon credits in one harvest.
A member of the same farm group and Businessmen Peter Nyeko at his farm in Masindi said that he invested UGX 20 Million along with one partner, in 20 hectares of trees and erned UGX 3.2 Billion in less than 10 years. He said that despite the work involved in clearing the land and caring for the trees, a tree bank is the best investment he could miss venturing.
"You can invest UGX 20 Million and in about 10 years you’re harvesting trees worth about UGX 3.2B Billion. You buy a seedling but once that seedling grows to become a fully grown tree in several years. As long as you’re willing to wait for a return on your capital employed, it’s pretty amazing. It’s just like a trust fund" he said
He however pointed out that there are other environmental concerns as well which he says could have local community implications.
“There are some really bad breeds, they cause a lot of destruction and should not be planted near the water. If we plant trees around water sources it might that up the water, then the water might never reach water bodies" he said.
He advised communities with arable land to be part of the tree planting practice to determine the tree they want to plant and get their share and adds that if trees are sensitively managed, can benefit the local population.
In a phone interview with Irene Bateebe, the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development she said that there is a steady growth in demand of global carbon credits, attributed to a growing number of businesses and corporate net-zero commitments.
She however, observed that the carbon markets ecosystem in Uganda is fragmented with mostly small-scale projects that offer minimal opportunity diversification.
“Through the Climate Finance Unit, the ministry will diversify and scale-up Uganda's carbon trade project portfolio, develop national policies, regulations and guidelines and build validation and verification capacity,” said Bateebe.
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