On the Ground in Nairobi, Kampala, and Zanzibar: What It Will Take to Grow East Africa’s Forest Economy
- CSFEP Team
- Jul 28
- 3 min read
In June, CSFEP travelled across Nairobi, Kampala, and Zanzibar with Built by Nature, one of our partners and funders.
Over two (very full!) weeks, we met with government leaders, manufacturers, foresters, builders, and other doers who are shaping the future of forest economies in East Africa.
The flurry of inspiring conversations left us with three key insights:
1. We must scale up current use of simple wood products—while laying the groundwork for advanced materials
What’s needed now: East Africa already produces products like timber, wall panels, and flooring–some of which are even cost-competitive with more traditional construction materials. These practical, proven materials can meet immediate construction needs, help grow manufacturing capacity, and acclimate consumers to using biobased products.
What’s needed next: To prepare for the future, we need to invest in the innovation, testing, and market readiness of more complex engineered wood products, such as CLT and glulam, made with African timber.
2. We need to accelerate use of today’s timber resources—while investing in indigenous species to better support biodiversity and resilience in the region.
What’s needed now: East Africa has an abundance of exotic species, especially in Uganda, where government support has helped smallholders plant thousands of hectares of pine and eucalyptus. These species are ready to harvest and can fuel a local biobased construction industry. We need to help the value chain make good use of this resource, and ensure it ends up in long-life products.
What’s needed next: To build a forest economy that also supports biodiversity and resilience, we’ll want to invest in product development with indigenous species (such as melia). Developing viable products from these trees will encourage smallholders and plantations to plant a variety of ecologically beneficial species, thus boosting the environmental benefits that can be provided by the region’s productive forests. In addition, species such as melia grow even faster than exotics–needing only 10-15 years to reach maturity, even when growing in marginalised areas–relative to the 25-30 years many exotic species need.
3. We should connect entrepreneurs to support—while building a full ecosystem of capital and technical help
What’s needed now: Many promising businesses in the East Africa biobased construction ecosystem are being held back by challenges in accessing the right capital or technical assistance. We need to make it easier for businesses to access the resources that already exist by matchmaking current support programs to their immediate needs.
What’s needed next: The region needs a stronger support system—one with diverse, flexible, competitive capital products and reliable technical assistance at every stage of business growth. For example, many stakeholders speak of the very high cost of traditional capital in East Africa. Others highlight the need for revolving capital sources for growing businesses. Building a better capital and technical assistance ecosystem will accelerate the sector and keep momentum going over the long haul.
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