World Water Day 2025: Safeguarding Uganda’s water future

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OPINION

By Brenda Achiro Muthemba

As we commemorate World Water Day 2025 under the theme "Glacier Preservation," we are reminded of the crucial role glaciers play in sustaining global and local water systems.

Celebrated annually on March 22 to raise awareness and tackle the water and sanitation crisis, this year’s theme aims to raise awareness of the challenges created by melting glaciers and calls on the global community to accelerate carbon emission reductions and implement local strategies to adapt to shrinking glaciers and uncertainties in water flows.

While Uganda is not widely known for its glaciers, the Rwenzori Mountains—often called the Mountains of the Moon—are home to some of Africa's last remaining tropical snowcaps. However, these snowcaps are rapidly retreating due to rising global temperatures, posing significant challenges to Uganda’s water security. Their loss contributes to unpredictable water flows, affecting rivers, agriculture, and livelihoods. Beyond Uganda, the disappearance of ice reserves also leads to rising sea levels, altered weather patterns, and disruptions in water availability—threats that impact ecosystems and communities worldwide

At Water For People Uganda, we recognize that protecting water sources, including those indirectly influenced by shrinking snow sheets, is fundamental to ensuring sustainable water access for all. The retreat of these high-altitude ice sheets, especially in regions like the Rwenzori Mountains, poses a significant challenge to the communities relying on rivers and lakes fed by these high-altitude water sources. As these ice formations shrink, the water supply becomes unpredictable, leading to droughts, floods, and disruptions in agriculture and livelihoods.

The Mpanga River, which sustains communities in Western Uganda, faces increasing threats from environmental degradation, climate change, and human activity. These threats mirror the global concerns tied to glacial melt—disruptions in natural water cycles that exacerbate water scarcity and environmental instability.

In response, Water For People Uganda is working alongside the Albert Water Management Zone under the Ministry of Water and Environment and other stakeholders to implement integrated water resources management strategies. Through river boundary demarcation, afforestation, soil conservation techniques, and community-led watershed protection efforts, we are helping to safeguard vital water sources and build climate resilience.

Downstream of River Mpanga in Kabuga sub-county, Kamwenge District, for example, tree planting and beekeeping initiatives have reduced encroachment on the river and given communities alternative sources of income. Due to these conservation efforts, communities have organized themselves under VSLAs and associations and are working together to improve their household incomes and livelihoods.

But we’re not just about saving water. We’re also about teaching people how to care for it. Consequently, beyond conservation efforts, our approach emphasizes education and community engagement. By raising awareness about the interconnectedness of water sources—whether rivers, natural springs, or underground aquifers—we empower communities to take proactive steps in water stewardship. This knowledge fosters local resilience and strengthens collective action to address the long-term impacts of climate change on water security.

There is evidence that such efforts are indeed paying off with the 2024 Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices (KAP) study commissioned by the Ministry of Water and Environment’s Albert Water Management Zone and Water For People and funded by the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation to assess and understand the current knowledge, attitudes, and practices of stakeholders in the five districts of the catchment zone revealing that over 90% of the population have knowledge and are aware of climate change. As such, more people are now more than ever willing to do their part in restoring the ecosystem.

While preserving glaciers may seem like a distant concern for Uganda, its consequences are deeply felt through erratic rainfall, prolonged dry spells, and changing river flows. By ensuring sustainable management of our water resources, we contribute to the global mission of protecting freshwater ecosystems and mitigating the effects of climate change while hedging ourselves against the adverse effects of disappearing glaciers worldwide.

If we don’t protect our water, we’re not just hurting ourselves; we’re hurting the whole world. Reflecting on this year’s World Water Day theme, we reaffirm our dedication to water security as a cornerstone of sustainable development. At Water For People Uganda, steered by our Everyone Forever model, we remain committed to working alongside communities, government agencies, and partners to safeguard water resources for future generations. The fight to protect these vital water sources is a fight for water security everywhere, because protecting one source ultimately means protecting them all.

The writer is a Country Director, Water For People Uganda