Army distributes 800 bags of impounded charcoal to Nwoya residents

What the report says

The Observer reports that more than 800 bags of charcoal seized from dealers moving the contraband through northern Uganda were handed out free to residents in Nwoya district on Thursday. The distribution took place in Agung village, Purongo sub-county, and Anaka Town Council, following orders from Fourth Infantry Division commander Maj. Gen. Felix Busizoori, who led the operation with security and local government officials.

According to the article, the charcoal was part of a larger haul of more than 2,000 bags impounded in Nwoya between Wednesday and Thursday at checkpoints in Purongo and Anaka. Security officers also intercepted at least three trucks allegedly carrying the charcoal toward Karuma. The Nwoya Resident District Commissioner, Christopher Omara, said some of the vehicles had come from Amuru district and from Oraba border point in Koboko district, and that seven suspects had been arrested and were being held at Nwoya Central Police Station.

The report says the crackdown follows renewed enforcement of a ban on commercial charcoal production, transport and trade in northern Uganda, including charcoal imported from South Sudan. Busizoori said the handover was meant to support communities affected by deforestation and to encourage environmental protection. The broader context is a long-running government effort to curb illegal logging and charcoal burning in northern Uganda, where forest loss has been linked by environmental groups to wider climate concerns.