To sustain the project, Mr. Toshi Bwana, from Umoja Conservation Trust, urged the Ministry of Education and Sports to establish community nurseries which will have bamboo, jackfriut, trees, coffee, eucalyptus and candle nut trees, among others. 

“The nurseries of high-value trees will generate seedlings which will grow into trees, protect the environment, guard against encroachment and, above all, establish the National Secondary Schools Green Economy, which will become a source of side income for the teachers and will later turn into main income. This is critical for sustainable food production for the schools,” he said.

Voices of school head teachers

Ms. Janat Namujjuzi Kakumba, head teacher at Ssugu Secondary School, in Buikwe district, welcomed the project which he described as eye-opening on climate change information. Ms. Namujjuzi noted that with the new lower secondary curriculum where students are required to take some lessons outside the classrooms, the project comes in handy.

“We have a new lower secondary curriculum, where we teach students from outside to appreciate the environment; therefore, if such projects are taken to schools, we shall be the best people to educate the learners with both theory and practical skills.”

According to Mr. Samuel Ainebyona, head teacher, Mayanga Seed Secondary School, Mitooma, some of the challenges schools face include encroachment from neighbours who graze their animals within the school’s premises. “Therefore, the planted trees will act as boundaries and help us to conserve the environment and provide shade to the learners. We have also learnt that we shall plant fruit and woodlot trees that will provide fruits to learners and firewood to the schools respectively.”