Museveni welcomes EU ban on coffee linked to deforestration

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Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has expressed support for the European Union’s regulations aimed at blocking coffee imports from registered farmers and those grown on deforested lands.

Speaking about the said regulations, which will also include taking coffee exports from Uganda’s registered coffee farmers, Museveni said this time around, for the first time, he will agree with the European Union. Museveni revealed that by coming up with the said regulations, the EU would have helped him in the fight against deforestation.

Recently, the European Parliament approved a landmark deforestation law, banning imports into the European Union of coffee, beef, soy, and other commodities if they are linked to the destruction of the world’s forests.

Furthermore, this move, set to take effect in 2025, demands verifiable proof that goods weren’t produced on deforested land post-2020 to avoid substantial fines aimed at combating climate change.

According to data from the online forest tracking portal Global Forest Watch, Uganda has seen an increase in deforestation in the last decade. Records released in 2021 show that while in 2001, the country lost 297 km2 of forest, by 2020, the figure had more than doubled (736 km2 of forest lost in a single year).

In conclusion, Museveni explained that when they had just returned from the bush in 1986, they found that people had encroached on the entire Mabira forest, but he chased them. He welcomed what he described as good pressure from the European Union. Museveni made the remarks on Friday night while responding to questions during his engagement with the media at State House Entebbe.

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