Towards Sustainable Charcoal Production and Use: a Systems Approach
Abstract
The majority of African households will continue depending on traditional fuels to meet their
daily energy needs for many decades to come. In particular, the demand for charcoal in most
countries in the region continues to grow at high rates owing to the ever-increasing rural-urban
migration. These trends, coupled with inefficient charcoal production and consumption practices,
and inaccessibility by most households to reliable and affordable commercial energy forms puts
in deep uncertainty the future dependence on the already-dwindling biomass resource for energy.
A systems approach to sustainable biomass production and consumption as regards charcoal is
proposed. Based on the life-cycle concept, the optimum policy and institutional arrangements
necessary for this strategy to achieve its goal are prescribed. The strategy can be potentially
adopted in all sub-Saharan African countries with various socio-economic and environmental
gains. At a time when the continent is searching for lasting solutions to energy insecurity as well
as reducing poverty, the strategy proposed provides such a chance for the poor to achieve this
goal in the short term, while preparing them to gain access to reliable and affordable commercial
energy options.