Ugandan Minister of State for Local Government Victoria Rusoke Businge has praised the contributions of the Chinese government and a Chinese non-governmental organization (NGO) for their conservation and forest restoration efforts in the country.

Businge made these remarks while handing over 10,000 trees and fruit seedlings, donated by the NGO Save the Wild Fund (SWF) to the Lake Victoria Region Local Authorities Cooperation (LVRLAC), in Kampala, the capital of Uganda, Wednesday.

The state minister highlighted the long-term partnership between local government authorities, such as Entebbe Municipality, and the Chinese city of Wuhan in areas including infrastructure development and environmental support.

"I tasked LVRLAC to work with Save the Wild Fund and the Chinese government to venture into more capacity-building programs and other joint ventures that our communities can gain more from," she said.

She also noted that China has made significant strides in natural resource management, sustainable and eco-friendly production, smart cities, urban planning, modern transportation, and green technology, calling for deeper cooperation between Uganda and China in these sectors.

Chinese Economic and Commercial Counselor in Uganda Wang Jianxun said at the ceremony that SWF is a representative organization of Chinese communities in Uganda, fulfilling social responsibilities and promoting environmental protection. He noted that the organization had previously donated 10,000 tree seedlings to LVRLAC in 2017.

Wang said that China has now embarked on a new journey to build a modern socialist country, including environmental protection, and encouraged more Chinese firms to participate in environmental conservation and corporate social responsibility programs.

Wu Ruize, chairman of SWF, said that the donated lemon, mango, orange, avocado, and African cherry trees would be planted around Lake Victoria, calling on more people to join the Fund's efforts and to pay greater attention to the issues caused by climate change and deforestation.

SWF was registered in 2017 by several Chinese students who had previously volunteered in Uganda. The fund aims to raise money to protect wildlife in the East African region and conduct related educational outreach activities. LVRLAC, established in 1997 by the municipal authorities of major cities around Lake Victoria, focuses on the sustainable utilization of resources in the Lake Victoria sub-region.