On September 16th, 2023, the ECOTRUST Secretariat and Board of Trustees, led by Innocent Byamukama, ECOTRUST’s Programme Coordinator for the Queen Elizabeth Landscape, visited the Kalinzu Central Forest Reserve in Rubirizi District. The visit focused on the work of the Ndangara and Nyakiyanja Parishes Tutungukye Group (NNTG), a local Collaborative Forest Management (CFM) group that has played a key role in restoring parts of the forest.

When ECOTRUST introduced the Trees for Global Benefit (TGB) programme to Rubirizi in 2012, NNTG was mainly made up of hunters who depended on unsustainable forest activities for survival. Through a partnership with the National Forestry Authority (NFA), ECOTRUST helped the group shift towards sustainable forest management by developing a clear management plan. This plan involved planting indigenous trees in the inner sections of the forest and creating eucalyptus buffers along the forest edge to provide firewood for the community.

Under the TGB programme, the group restored 380 hectares of forest using indigenous tree species and allocated specific plots for planting. The eucalyptus trees planted around the forest helped meet community needs and reduced the pressure on the protected areas. With time, NNTG also began to explore income-generating activities beyond tree planting. With support from ECOTRUST, the group started a beekeeping enterprise. Training and funding from the World Bank helped them scale up their operations, and by 2023, they were managing 3,800 beehives and producing more than 600 kilograms of honey every year.

That same year, NNTG signed a revised agreement with the NFA, granting them an additional 60 hectares within Kalinzu for reforestation. They also started a new partnership with Toro Botanical Gardens, where they now supply forest herbal extracts, opening up another economic opportunity for the community.

Today, NNTG stands as a model Collaborative Forest Management (CFM) group that has informed national policy on collaborative forest management in Uganda.