Many schools, especially those still using traditional three-stone cooking methods, rely heavily on firewood. This dependency contributes significantly to deforestation and environmental degradation.
Schools and other institutions of learning are advocating for a reduction in the cost of energy-efficient clean cooking stoves as the fight to save the environment intensifies. Many schools, especially those still using traditional three-stone cooking methods, rely heavily on firewood. This dependency contributes significantly to deforestation and environmental degradation.
The use of firewood is also financially burdensome, with schools struggling to meet rising costs. For example, a lorry full of firewood transported from Masindi District to Lira costs approximately 1.5 million shillings per school term. Lira Police Primary School uses at least three such lorries each term, translating to approximately 4.5 million shillings per term, or 13.5 million annually.
Tom Richard Okello, Director of Studies at the school, says sourcing firewood within the Lango Sub-region has become increasingly difficult due to scarcity. “For the last five years, the school has been relying on the local firewood that were bought from the local area within Lira but probably since last year, we have been experiencing shortage of the local firewood so we have decided now to source from other districts,” he said.
Adding, “When you would go to places like Otuke, Alebtong, the other part of Lira, there were a lot of those natural trees but because of the population growth, people have cut down all the trees and now, at the moment, even at the homestead, the households, people don't have what to use for cooking.” The high cost of purchase and transportation presents a further challenge for the school.
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Okello acknowledged that many institutions—schools, universities, health centers, and hospitals—continue to rely on firewood, even though cleaner, energy-efficient alternatives are cheaper in the long run and healthier.
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A teacher from another primary school in Lira City, speaking on condition of anonymity, revealed that their school uses between 12 to 18 loads of firewood per year.
Despite the harmful environmental and health impacts of using firewood, studies show that only 15 percent of Uganda’s population has adopted clean cooking technologies. The remaining 85 percent still depend on traditional firewood and charcoal, largely due to limited market availability and high costs.
Voxpop on energy-efficient stoves:
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Even with the obvious benefits, Okello says the cost of energy-efficient cooking technology remains prohibitive for institutions like his, urging the government to intervene and reduce prices.
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Mariah Kizza from the National Renewable Energy Platform emphasized the dangers of firewood use, noting its effect on both the school environment and learners' health. She advised school administrators to prioritize clean stoves over additional infrastructure.
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“So the thing is, if power is not affordable, we need to put up, for example, policies but the dialogue does not come from us alone. It is multi-stakeholder. We need to work as a group—a group of private sector, a group of government entities, local government,” she added.
Meanwhile, Leonard Otika, the Lira City Natural Resource Officer, encouraged institutions with raw materials for biogas to contact city authorities for guidance and support.
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Johnson Kiiza, a UEDCL metering engineer in the Lira area office, explained that there is a favorable electricity tariff for those who use electric pressure cookers.
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Currently, Lira City—together with the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development and the National Renewable Energy Platform (NREP)—is implementing the Behavioral Change Communication for Electronic Cooking (BCCeC) project. Funded by the UK government, the initiative is part of Uganda’s broader commitment to sustainable energy.
The project aligns with Uganda’s National Electric Cooking Strategy and promotes e-cooking through awareness campaigns, favorable electricity tariffs, training for appliance repairs, and the development of national standards for electric cooking devices.
