In 1990, 24 percent of Uganda was covered in natural forest. As a result of settlement and agricultural expansion, illegal logging, and charcoal production, natural forests in Uganda rapidly declined, reaching as low as 9 percent of the country’s area in 2015. In recognition of the social, economic and environmental threats posed to Uganda by the loss of its forests, the Government of Uganda, with support from international partners, implemented a series of policies and programmes to reduce pressure on remaining forest systems.