Uganda's Journey to a Green and Circular Economy: A Path to Sustainable Development

By Elizabeth Kebirungi, Planner, Environment and Natural Resources, National Planning Authority

Uganda's natural resources are at risk due to the pressure of socio-economic development, urbanization, and inadequate technological investments. This has led to excessive resource consumption, waste, and emissions; posing a threat to the country's natural resource abundance. Uganda must prioritize the development of comprehensive waste management and ecosystem standards to guide the circular economy. These initiatives are instrumental in addressing pressing environmental issues and promoting sustainable practices. By aligning these programs with the circular economy framework, Uganda can significantly enhance its socio-economic development, while ensuring environmental sustainability and resource efficiency.

The theme of NDP III is sustainable industrialization for inclusive growth, employment, and wealth creation. The NPA provides guidelines to integrate specific crosscutting issues in planning by the responsible agencies, and planning teams adhere to these guidelines. NDP III introduced a program-based approach, which is deepened and emphasized in NDP IV. This means that all 18 programs will work together to reduce waste, cost, and time; with the goal of achieving higher household incomes and employment for sustainable socio-economic transformation. The program-based approach encourages the circular economy through promotion of value addition along selected value chains such as agriculture (fisheries and commercial forestry), tourism, and minerals & oil and gas. Strengthening capacity to access innovative and alternative financing instruments (including infrastructural bonds, green bonds, bilateral and multilateral agreements, Islamic financing, diaspora financing, and climate financing) becomes a key objective.

Uganda is transitioning to a circular economy, with the aim of reducing intensive extraction of natural capital as well as better waste generation and management through value addition. This transition is aimed at lessening the environmental impact and promoting socio-economic sustainability. The National Planning Authority has already started integrating the principles of a circular economy into the National Development Plan III (2020/21 – 2024/25), but the implementation has been limited.

Nevertheless, the growing sustainable agriculture practices have significantly increased land productivity and reduced deforestation. The adoption of alternative energy sources such as biogas and solar power has substantially decreased dependence on wood and charcoal. Furthermore, resource efficiency has seen tangible improvements through a program-based approaches that integrates various initiatives, resulting in reduced resource damage and carbon emissions.

Comprehensive mainstreaming will continue in NDP IV (2025/26-2030/31), with a focus on fostering a change in mindset change at national and regional levels down to the parish, supported by capacity building and favourable policies. Therefore, NDP IV will build on interventions that prioritize production and productivity using the Parish Development Model (PDM) as a framework.

The Parish Development Model (PDM) involves leveraging sustainable practices to enhance socio-economic transformation. The first aspect of the PDM, which includes production, storage, processing, and marketing, follows the principles of the circular economy through enhancement of resource efficiency, reducing waste, and maximizing product lifecycles.Proper infrastructure development is the government's responsibility under the second pillar when produce is harvested. This includes building storage and processing facilities to reduce post-harvest losses and encourage recycling and reuse. In addition, infrastructure development, in terms of more roads, will certainly help improve market connections for waste recycling and circular products, as well as promote local sourcing of raw materials, minimizes agricultural waste, and fostering a more sustainable and efficient community-led sector.

The PDM also focuses on encouraging a shift from subsistence to commercial farming, and urges communities to add value to all resources. This change promotes the adoption of sustainable practices, ensuring that communities are economically empowered while also protecting the environment. Through utilizing local knowledge, communities can effectively manage their resources, implement sustainable practices, and create economic value.

Financial assistance provided under the PDM supports investments in sustainable practices and technologies that improve resource efficiency. This helps ensure that resources are used efficiently, waste is minimized, and communities are economically empowered in the context of protecting the environment. In addition, the education and skills development programs under the PDM also provide opportunities for capacity-building in innovations and practices related to circular economy.

The "Uganda from Linear to Circular Economy" program focuses on needs-based planning, policy development, and capacity building to promote the circular economy. This is in line with the Uganda Green Growth Development Strategy, which aim at eliminating poverty, maintaining economic growth, promoting social inclusion, enhancing human welfare, creating job opportunities, and protecting the environment and natural resources.

This undertaking should and will support the Uganda President's vision of transitioning the Ugandan society from subsistence to commercial farming, ensuring that every community resource is utilized effectively and efficiently. For example, after processing coffee, the husks ought to be used as chicken feed or manure, creating a closed-loop system where waste is minimized and value is continually added. This approach not only boosts productivity but also promotes environmental stewardship by improving soil fertility and fostering regenerative agriculture.

Conclusion

Through Circular Economy, Uganda has an opportunity to achieve strategies for growing the economy ten-fold in a transformative, inclusive, and sustainable manner. This approach emphasizes the importance of collaborative implementation, sustained follow-up, and accountability to achieve sustainable and inclusive economic development. It integrates multiple sectors and requires intensified efforts across various socio-economic areas. To accelerate these efforts, the program-based approach outlined in development plans III and IV is a practical option. However, this approach should be supported by capacity building, policy formulation, and integration into government-implemented tools such as the Program Development Management (PDM) system.

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