BY GRACE MACHA IN ARUSHA
Illegal harvesting of trees and livestock grazing is posing a serious threat to forestry resources across the country.
The challenge has been compounded by climate change impact and dependence of fuelwood as a main source of energy.
While some forests are being mowed down for timber products, others are cleared for agriculture and charcoal burning.
"Law enforcement is the cure to all these", asserted Prof Dos Santos Silayo, the Commissioner General of Tanzania Forest Service (TFS) said in Arusha this week.
He said at the end of military drills for senior forestry wardens that the agency would not despair in the protection of forestry resources.
"The military training is part of our strategies to enforce laws that would protect our forests from illegal harvesters", he stressed.
TFS was established a decade ago to develop and manage the national forest and bee resources sustainably with other stakeholders.
The agency was also tasked to deliver goods and services to meet local and international socio-economic and environmental needs.
Its mandate extends to establishing and managing national forest plantations and apiaries as well as bee reserves.
These would not only lead to a stable ecosystem but also revenue generation from forest, bee products and allied biological resources.
Currently, the agency manages a total of 9.8million hectares, across the country, of which 20 are nature forest reserves covering 936,854 ha.
There are also 24 forest plantations, 373 forest reserves, 14 bee reserves and mangrove forests in the coastal areas co ering 150,000 ha.
But Prof Silayo said the forests under TFS management were under siege not only from the encroachers but also forest fires and insecurity.
"Some of our forest wardens have been injured or lost lives from criminals who breach the law through illegally harvesting", he said.
He acknowledged, however, that there has been an increased demand for forest products from human and livestock populations around the protected sites.
A recent report on the Status of Forest Management in Tanzania put the annual deforestation rate at 372,816 ha a year.
In order to address gaps in the protection of forest resources, he explained, the agency has embarked on military training of its staff.
According to him, nearly all TFS staff (98 percent) have undergone basic military training as part of transformation to a paramilitary outfit.
Other conservation agencies roped in the programme are the Tanzania National Parks (Tanapa), Tanzania Wildlife Management Authority (Tawa) and the Ngorongoro Conservation Area Authority (NCAA).
The 10-day training at the Olmotonyi Forestry Training Institute near Arusha targeted 47 senior staff, among them zonal, department and plantation managers.
"Military training is among capacity building measures to address wanton destruction of forest and allied resources", he pointed out.
However, he said, the agency was still facing a shortage of staff to manage dozens of forests and bee reserves as well as forest plantations.
TFS board chairman Brigadier General Mbaraka Mkeremy said the transformation of the agency to paramilitary outfit was also aimed to improve efficiency and service delivery.
"We should do away with 'business as usual' attitude. We have high hopes that such training would bring change", he said.
He said the government was keen to avail funds for purchasing modern equipment- among them communication and transport - for the agency.
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