Plans are underway to designate Masaka as the first Ramsar city in East Africa for the wise use and protection of wetlands.

This was announced by the Masaka city mayor, Florence Namayanja, during the World Environment Day hosted by Masaka city on Wednesday, February 2, at Gayaza playground.

Namayanja said Masaka Ramsar city will turn into an international tourism attraction.

The acting director in the directorate of environment affairs, Collins Oloya, applauded Masaka for ensuring that the city wetlands are conserved, citing Nakayiba wetland and the development of a management plan and designation of Nabajuzzi wetland as a Ramsar site.

Oloya, who delivered key statements from the Ramsar Convention secretary general for the World Environment Day, said wetlands are critical in delivering common global commitments relating to biodiversity, climatic change and sustainable development.

A former Masaka-based motor rally driver, Richard Guma, will be sponsored by the environment ministry to attend the Ramsar Convention scheduled for November in China, in appreciation for his selfless contribution in the protection of Nabajjuzi wetland in Masaka city.

Masaka Ramsar City, which includes the Lake Nabugabo Wetland Ramsar Site, designed a five year management plan.

Implementation will cost a total of $6m, according to the Nairobi-based USAID chief of party, Dr MC Cormick Scott.

Five districts signed agreements in support of the five-year management plan for the site during its launching ceremony, presided over by the water and environment minister, Sam Cheptoris.

The function held at Nabugabo Primary School in Bukakata sub-county, Masaka district, on June 17, 2017, attracted authorities from East and central Africa, environment non-governmental organisations and district local government leaders.

Scott said the funds will address the Conservation Investment Plan (CIP) community livelihood initiatives at the Lake Nabugabo Ramsar site.

The New Vision learnt that the global donors are expected to mobilise resources to facilitate the implementation of the site’s management plan.

Scott said the site was identified as the highest-ranking biodiversity site in East Africa.

Lake Nabugabo wetland complex, designated as a Ramsar site in 2004, has been stretched to Katonga wetland in Kalungu, Butambala, Mpigi as well as Kalungu districts.

The water ministry and the wetland department reviewed the original management plan for the site and stretched its area following the increasing population pressure and land use changes between 2004 and 2009.

The site, located near Lake Victoria, with small satellite lakes like Kayugi, Birinzi and Manywa, has over 300 plant species, two of which (Senecio Nabugabensis and Xyri sednae) are endemic to the site.

Nabugabo is also a home to 281 bird species, including 15% of the world’s population of the Blue Swallows and five globally threatened species.

The East and central African coordinator, Mathias Tumungesi, said the programme’s ultimate goal is to eradicate poverty, promote sustainability and protect lakes Victoria and Nabugabo.

In 2014, in response to a request from the Uganda Wetland Department, USAID funded the Planning for Resilience in East Africa through the Policy, Adaptation, Research and Economic Development (PREPARED) project, designed as an economic valuation of the ecosystem services of Lake Nabugabo wetland complex.

The estimated value of the original Nabugabo ecosystems services provided was $4,558,000 per year.

The extension of Nabugabo Ramsar Site will increase and secure the economic value of the wetland to more than $44,010,000m (90% increase) annually, according to the project economic value statistic report.

The provisioning services at Nabugabo rated fishing highly, followed by wood-based energy and timber, livestock and production, as well as nature-based tourism, among others.

The report noted that Nabugabo generates goods and services worth $200 for each member of the local community, a value that necessitates urgent conservation and protection of the expanded Ramsar site biodiversity.

The biodiversity is threatened by the human population’s demand for wetland resources, leading to low water levels, reduced fish stocks and agricultural productivity and habitat fragmentation.

The report stated that the Government stands to safeguard more than $281m of the ecosystem service values over the next 25 years.

The extended Ramsar site will serve to secure economically important wetland resources for more than 190,000 people.

A 10-year action budget needed to enhance conservation in the extended site has also set aside sh24.5b to cater for the support of sustainable local livelihoods and markets in the catchment climate change adaptation and resilience development, aimed at reducing the vulnerability of people.

The ecosystem will be covered under a sh6.90b budget.