Communities in Mbarara City have rejected a proposed nationwide charcoal ban, warning that cleaner cooking alternatives remain unaffordable and inaccessible for low-income households and informal businesses that depend on the fuel for daily survival. Residents, vendors and local leaders argue the government must make liquefied petroleum gas and electricity cheaper and more reliable before enforcing restrictions that could undermine livelihoods and force small enterprises to close.
In Katete trading centre, a busy commercial hub in Mbarara City South, small food vendors rely on charcoal stoves to prepare chips, chapati and roasted plantain throughout the evening hours. Patience Natumanya, a Katete resident, explained that charcoal's affordability in small quantities makes it the only realistic cooking fuel for people whose earnings fluctuate daily. "Most of us survive on small daily earnings, and charcoal is the only fuel we can buy in small quantities according to what we have in hand," she said. She added that switching to gas or electricity would be impossible for households already struggling to cover food and other basic expenses. "Switching to gas or electricity is impossible for us right now because a single gas refill costs more than our entire weekly food budget," Natumanya said.
Business owners warn that an abrupt ban would devastate the informal food sector. Alex Abireebe, another Mbarara resident and small business operator, cautioned that street food enterprises depend on charcoal for continuous cooking because electricity supply is unreliable and gas is too expensive for commercial use. "If they ban charcoal today, most of street food business will collapse instantly. Electricity goes off unexpectedly, and gas is far too expensive to run continuously for commercial cooking. We need realistic solutions, not immediate bans," Abireebe said. Bernard Musinguzi, who has sold charcoal for 17 years, described customers buying fuel in quantities as small as Shs500 because they cannot afford larger purchases, questioning whether such consumers could ever afford gas or electricity alternatives.
Local government officials have aligned with community concerns. Mbarara City Deputy Mayor Ronald Taremwa Bamuhayira said the government was moving too quickly without addressing fundamental gaps in energy infrastructure and affordability. "The government is moving too fast without fixing the underlying issues. Many areas across Mbarara City still lack reliable electricity connections, while only a small fraction of our population can afford solar power infrastructure and gas technology," Bamuhayira said. He warned that implementing the policy without resolving these challenges risked disrupting household incomes and forcing small businesses to shut down.
Stakeholders are calling for a gradual, supported transition to cleaner fuels. Community leaders urge policymakers to reduce taxes on gas and electricity, improve electricity access and provide assistance to households unable to immediately afford alternative technologies before any charcoal restrictions take effect. Abireebe said the government should make these alternatives affordable and accessible first. "Let the government consider reducing the tax on gas and electricity, make it affordable for everyone and accessible, then they can pass the law to ban charcoal," he said.
The dispute highlights a central challenge facing Uganda's efforts to reduce charcoal dependence while protecting low-income households and informal traders who currently rely on the fuel to meet daily cooking needs. For savers and borrowers in Uganda, an abrupt charcoal ban without affordable alternatives could increase living costs for households already struggling financially and threaten the survival of small businesses that generate income for informal traders.