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The Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) has started to translocate kobs to Ajai Game/Wildlife Reserve in Uganda's northwest, as a precursor activity for the reintroduction of southern white rhinos to their natural habitat in the West Nile region.

In a quest to reintroduce the rhinos in Uganda’s wildlife protected areas, the Ugandan government through UWA has since 2006 been running a breeding programme at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary in Nakasongola district to multiply the original stock of six southern white rhinos.

To date, this subspecies of rhinos have increased to 35 individuals and are now ready for reintroduction into the wild at Ajai Wildlife Reserve in Madi Okollo district.

Night Zahara, the tourism officer for Madi-Okollo, confirmed the arrival of the first batch of 32 female kobs on Friday, successfully brought by UWA rangers.

She said a total of 200 kobs are expected to be brought to this game reserve ahead of the official launch of the translocation activities on Monday (March 18).

Baboons roam around Ajai Wildlife Reserve.

UWA also plans to translocate buffalos and zebras to Ajai to improve the eco-system for the expected rhinos.

'Huge opportunity'

UWA's Zahara said community sensitization programmes are ongoing to address the sticky issue of human-wildlife conflict. For starters, the grazing area for the rhinos will be fenced off to protect the wild animals from poachers and other harmful episodes.

She appealed to tour companies to prepare to tap into the lucrative tourism industry, which is one of the leading foreign exchange earners for Uganda.

“Revamping the Ajai Game Reserve with the rhinos will draw the attention of tourists in the region. Historically, the 32nd US President Franklin D. Roosevelt visited the Ajai Game Reserve, thus this provides a huge opportunity for the growth of tourism in the West Nile region."

 The game reserve sits on 166 square kilometres land situated in Madi-Okollo district, which was carved out of Arua district in 2019.

Before the white rhinos got wiped out in Uganda's wild, Ajai Game Reserve and its environs in present-day Madi Okollo was the only known natural habitat for the white rhinos in Uganda.

Rokoni Odama Madimva

The white rhino is a grazing mammal with a broad, square muzzle that lives in groups of up to 10 individuals and fights with its horns.

'Mutual friendship'

Ben Afidra Amorimvapi is a Ugandan retired civil servant cum conservationist, who lives in Degiya village, Olali parish in Ogoko sub-county near the Ajai Wildlife Reserve.

He is proud to be associated with efforts to reintroduce the white rhinos in this reserve.
Afidra said that in 1994, he and researchers from the US traversed the entire reserve. 

“These white rhinos were friendly to the people and the people were friendly to them, taking into account that these are our gold. The superstition was that if you eat the meat of the white rhino, you would develop a very big stomach, which of course no one wants to experience, and so the beasts would traverse the whole sanctuary and no one would hurt them," he said.

"Although people grew cotton and it got destroyed by the white rhinos, nobody dared touch them."

In fact, from Afrida's account, Rhino Camp was named after the white rhinos due to the endearment the communities had on the creature.

“One very funny thing with the animals was that they would select a specific place either in the western or eastern side of the sanctuary to defecate at least once in a month. 

"The animals would also go to a place called Rhino Camp, which was named after the rhinos because they [rhinos] liked camping at this particular location for various ecological reasons."

Afrida believes the only alternative to preserving the Madi culture is to allow the communities neigbouring the reserve to continue to coexist with the animals in the reserve.

Ajai Wildlife Reserve

“I am aware when there is tourism, the locals will benefit simply because of the crafts because there shall be people who will travel from far places to view the animals, but where shall we get the materials for making the materials apart from extracting them from the wildlife reserve?

"Now they want to bar us from accessing the protected area yet we used to mix freely with these animals without causing any problems."

Afrida urged the government to embrace the reintegration of various traditional values and practices with modern approaches to effectively conserve wild animals.

He is afraid that the reintroduction of the white rhinos will cause the resettlement of 11 homesteads in Degiya village yet he says they have appreciated the value of the wildlife. 
'National heritage'

Meanwhile, Rokoni Ma’dimva, the community wildlife association vice-secretary for Ajai Madi Community, said the planned reintroduction of the white rhinos presents a huge opportunity for the communities living around Ajai Wildlife Reserve, the Madi community and the entire people of West Nile through job creation.

“There is need to develop camping sites, rest houses, lodges, and other amenities to boost the tourism potential of the wildlife reserve," he said.

The acting chief warden of Murchison Falls Conservation Area, Dr. Margaret Driciru, affirmed government's decision to reintroduce the white rhinos. 

“The government has already made a decision to bring back the white rhinos, and the people of Madi Okollo know very well that this has been their cultural heritage," she said.

"The rhinos have also been the national heritage for the government. In the past, the country earned a lot of money through tourism, so the rhino activity is one of those key things the government is considering."

Compensation

Madi Okollo district chairperson Ismael Drabe said the communities neighbouring Ajai Wildlife Reserve were sensitized in February this year about the significance of the planned reintroduction of the white rhinos.

“There is both joy and resentment. All Madis across the board have welcomed the proposal to reintroduce the white rhinos," he said.

"The community members carved into the protected area are asking that now that they are being asked to leave, where should they go, although UWA promises to compensate them. The district local government on the other hand is tasking UWA with being fair and transparent in valuing their lands for appropriate compensation."

Ben Ojara Lacam, a former game assistant at Ajai Game Reserve, feels the reintroduction of the white rhinos is long overdue.

"When I was in Ajai, we carried out the ecological and developmental potential survey of Ajai Game Reserve and we found out that the grass species that the white rhino eats is in Ajai, and the rhinos can eat it on a sustained basis for their entire life.

"The whole world knows that and therefore, the white rhinos should be brought back home."

Lacam said the presence of the white rhinos led to the naming of a hotel in Arua then as the White Rhino Hotel, which provided recreational and employment opportunities to the people of West Nile.

A mother and baby Rhino at Ziwa Rhino Wildlife Ranch. (Courtesy Photos)

Rhinos and goats

Rebecca Aniku, a conservationist and native of Degiya village, believes the return of the white rhinos will enhance efforts to preserve the rich culture of the Madi through attraction of domestic and foreign tourists.

She has lobbied for over 600 goats which have been distributed to needy but hardworking community members in Madi Okollo to enhance efforts to reintroduce the white rhinos.

“Rhinos eat better on grass which has been eaten by other animals, including goats because the grass is short. When the grass is long, the rhinos cannot eat it," said Aniku. 

"The plan to have the goats project is to prepare ground for effective reintroduction of the rhinos. A rhino cannot stay in an area where there are no hoofed animals. That is why there are plans to first bring other animals into the wild at Ajai before the reintroduction of the rhinos. 

"I am working with the community so that they benefit from the reserve. They can also take their animals to the reserve to eat the grass before the rhinos eat the grass. I want to make this as an example for the entire world to see and learn from."