Tanzania's Kagasheki vows to revisit Forest Act to protect trees

AllAfrica.com via the Tanzania Daily News: Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism on Friday vowed to revisit the Forest Act with a view to protect the 55 per cent of wood forest from total extinction and desertification. Addressing reporters in Dar es Salaam on Friday, the Minister, Ambassador Khamis Kagasheki, said majority of people in the country were wantonly harvesting trees without permits from the concerned authorities.

Ambassador Kagasheki said the situation on the ground calls for immediate government attention to address the matter by revisiting the Forest Act in order to serve forests in the country from total extinction.

"We have been working for years on environment conservation but the information on the worsening situation does not reach the populace and most of the tree users are still ignorant of the forest Act and thus more sensitisation campaign on forest conservation is required to be carried on," said the minister.

He said through the just ended phase one of National Forest Resources Monitoring and Assessment (NAFORMA), the ministry would be able to monitor the changes taking place and evaluate the impact of policies and strategies on the management and utilisation of forests.

Furthermore, the minister told reporters that the ministry was strategising to make concerted efforts on disseminating vital information to the people on the importance of forest conservation and better use of it without environment destruction....

NASA image of the lake created by Tanzania's Nyumba ya Mungu dam