According to a test of the Partnership for Clean Indoor Air (PCIA), the energy saving of the fireless cooker combined with different stove types amount to an average fuel reduction of 50%; hence reducing pressure on the forests which are the sources of biomass energy.
At the Joint Energy and Environment Project (JEEP) home found in Kyanja, Gayaza in Wakiso district Central Uganda, is a team of dedicated people determined to turn back the global warming clock, through their different efforts.
They have improved energy technologies that stretch from briquettes made out of charcoal residues, charcoal and fire wood saving stoves as well as ovens. They also have solar and bio-gas energies and have lately developed a Fireless Basket Cooker.
The Fireless Basket cooker aims at saving the amount of charcoal and firewood during the cooking process which in the end reduces pressure on the country’s forests among other added health benefits.
Jeyden Babirye Namutebi, a field staff at JEEP explains that the Fireless Basket Cooker completes the cooking process without use of any other biomass energy apart from the insulated heat in the basket that is provided by the hot saucepan placed and covered into the basket.
Also referred to as the Wonder cooking basket, the fireless pan has cotton sewed in it, held in place with a sewed cotton cloth, and a fitting cotton cloth lid.
“We emphasise the use of cotton because it has been proven to be a good thermal insulator whereas other cloth types such as silk and polyester cannot stand the heat,” notes Babirye.
The fireless pan cooks different kinds of food and keeps it hot for seven hours. According to Babirye, foods that don’t need stirring like, potatoes, cassava, meat, fish to mention but a few are more suitable this technology.
Different types of foods, and cooking time;
| Food type | Time of boiling on stove | Time on Fireless cooker |
| Dry beans | 1hr:30mins | 2hrs |
| Fresh beans | 30mins | 45mins |
| Chicken | 30mins | 30mins |
| Rice | 5mins | 30mins |
| Meat | 30mins | 1hr |
| Matooke | 5mins | 45mins |
| Sweet potatoes | 15mins | 1hr |
| Cassava | 10mins | 1hr |
| Offals | 10mins | 2hrs |
| Fish | 3mins | 20mins |
| Peanut butter stew | 10mins | 1hr |
| Mushroom stew | 5mins | 10mins |
Apart from not using non-thermal insulator material, and not being applicable to all foods, the basket has other limitations such as; not opening food placed in the basket until it’s ready, in order to avoid the escape of the heat.
The basket also has to be kept dry because once the cotton is wet, it cannot serve well its thermal insulator purpose. After cooking, the food should not be left in the basket for more than seven hours to avoid probable growth of micro-organisms. It is also advisable to change the cloth for washing, every after six months.
Ruth Kiwanuka, the JEEP Executive Director says, they have embarked on teaching people this new technology both to the rural areas and urban centres where firewood and charcoal are the main source of heat energy. She however, noted that many people are still Skeptical with adopting these new technologies.
“Even after the training, when we go back for a follow up, we find many people still using their non energy saving ways of cooking. Changing people’s mind set is still a big challenge,” Kiwanuka remarked.
She however, said, arrangements have been made with schools, to train the young generation. The JEEP executive director remains optimistic that this will create a strong and better strategy, in changing the mindset, triggering the growing generation towards being positive about better energy saving technologies.
Uganda’s status on Biomass energy
According to Energypedia, a wiki platform for collaborative knowledge exchange on renewable energy, energy access, and energy efficiency topics in developing countries, biomass in Uganda, accounts for 94% of the total energy consumption in the country with charcoal mainly used in the urban areas while firewood, agro-residues and wood wastes are widely used in the rural areas. Firewood takes up 78.6% and charcoal 5.6%.
Like in most African countries, research, development and dissemination of efficient and modern biomass technologies are not yet at the desired level.
The Biomass Energy Strategy 2013 notes that Uganda’s dependence of tree biomass is unsustainable, with the demand estimated at 44 million tons per annum, compared to a supply of 26 million tons per annum.
Uganda’s future Forestry management
The National Forest plan of 2002 was revised to a National Forestry Plan 2011/12 – 2021/22, with emphasis on the National Development Plan that places forestry at the centre of Uganda’s development agenda.
The plan aimed at; Restoring Forest cover back to the1990 levels by 2015, Restoring degraded natural forests in forest reserves and private forests; Reducing pressure on forest cover as a source of wood fuel and construction materials.
However, all these have remained hard targets to achieve as many Ugandans continue using firewood and charcoal because it’s the most affordable source of heat energy in many homesteads.
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