Death of the rolling hills
Jul 05, 2011
IT used to be a favourite destination for many a tourist. It was fondly referred to as the Switzerland of Africa, if not for anything else, for its cold weather and hilly landscape. Not anymore.
By Chris Mugasha
IT used to be a favourite destination for many a tourist. It was fondly referred to as the Switzerland of Africa, if not for anything else, for its cold weather and hilly landscape. Not anymore.
The chilly mornings, the thick fog, the eye-catching terraces, the swamps, the steep slopes and the beautiful greenery, are all gone. Kabale is a ghost of its former self, frequently battered by natural calamities — violent storms, hailstones, floods, soil erosion and landslides.
Not a mere misfortune though, nor the hand of supernatural powers as many locals here believe — the woes of Kabale are man-inflicted – a result of recklessness, a hard blow dealt on the innocent natural resources.
Environmental degradation
The place that used to be one of the coldest in the country has seen its temperature rise day by day as a result of uncontrolled wetland encroachment, tree cutting and general environmental degradation.
The high population growth has, over the years, pushed up the demand for land resulting in land fragmentation, forest clearing and swamp reclamation. Where there used to be swamps a few years ago, vast farmlands have been established, the hills have been dug up for stone excavation, swamps for brick-laying and forests wantonly cut down for charcoal burning and building materials. The rapid disappearance of wetlands has resulted into erratic weather patterns, floods and storms and landslides, malaria epidemics and rampant land wrangles, but who is to blame for all this mess?
Where is the problem?
According to the district natural resources coordinator, Paul Sabiiti, lack of teamwork among land users, politicians and technocrats in the district has weakened the systems that were set up to oversee the conservation policy. According to Sabiiti, the water table has seriously gone down while the little existing water is not clean.
“Where there are contradictions between technocrats and politicians, the land users end up flouting the wetland policy,†Sabiiti explains.
The poor people/peasants are busy clearing the wetlands paving way for cultivation both for cash and food crops especially Irish potatoes while the rich, including government officials are busy expanding farmlands. “If we were all using the same language,†Sabiiti says, “people would respect the policy.â€
According to the residents, the issue of wetland degradation in Kabale dates as far back as the 1970s when the Idi Amin government used to encourage people to use the wetlands for survival by leasing them to cooperative societies to grow both food and cash crops.
Eight cooperative societies which included Nyakabungo Growers, Bugunga Multi-purpose, Ruhuma Cooperative Society, Rurigita, Mukibungo, Katasa Growers, Nyarurambi Growers and Joshua got lease to use wetlands but it is not clear whether these leases have ever been withdrawn from the societies.
But even with the glaring dangers of global warming, the degradation continues unabated.
No political will
The residents also attribute the wetlands degradation to lack of political will, sensitisation and awareness which they blame on the politicians.
“It seems they fear losing support. That is why they keep confusing the peasants as they (peasants) continue to encroach on the wetlands.
We have never heard our leaders talking about environment issues,†says Fringesi Bitungwa, the secretary for information on Nyamuriro Wetland Management Committee.
The residents say with the intervention of Nature Uganda and its programme of the Crane and Wetland Conservation Project since 2005 at Nyamuriro Wetland, they have been able to replant about 9km of the wetland and have been trained to reserve plots or portions of land (within the wetland) where they plant once or twice in a year.
Where do we go?
The people in areas like Muko and Ikumba sub-counties where part of Nyamuriro Wetland has been degraded argue that they cannot leave the wetlands because it is their source of livelihood. “Because the area is hilly, wetlands are our source of everything, especially food,†says James Tibanyendera, the LCI chairman Kanyamatamba village in Muko sub- county. Tibanyendera says compared to other areas (outside Kabale) which favour the growing of food crops like banana, groundnuts, potatoes, cassava and millet, such crops cannot be grown in Kabale because of soil erosion.
Any efforts to control population? The severe shortage of land and food in the area is gradually forcing men to abandon polygamous marriages.
“Family planning is reducing the number of women one should have because of shortage of land. We have also reduced on the number of meals from five to one in a day because there is no food,†Tibanyendera says.
However, Jack Bandagamire, a resident argues that women who would want to use modern methods of family planning fear the side effects.
IT used to be a favourite destination for many a tourist. It was fondly referred to as the Switzerland of Africa, if not for anything else, for its cold weather and hilly landscape. Not anymore.
The chilly mornings, the thick fog, the eye-catching terraces, the swamps, the steep slopes and the beautiful greenery, are all gone. Kabale is a ghost of its former self, frequently battered by natural calamities — violent storms, hailstones, floods, soil erosion and landslides.
Not a mere misfortune though, nor the hand of supernatural powers as many locals here believe — the woes of Kabale are man-inflicted – a result of recklessness, a hard blow dealt on the innocent natural resources.
Environmental degradation
The place that used to be one of the coldest in the country has seen its temperature rise day by day as a result of uncontrolled wetland encroachment, tree cutting and general environmental degradation.
The high population growth has, over the years, pushed up the demand for land resulting in land fragmentation, forest clearing and swamp reclamation. Where there used to be swamps a few years ago, vast farmlands have been established, the hills have been dug up for stone excavation, swamps for brick-laying and forests wantonly cut down for charcoal burning and building materials. The rapid disappearance of wetlands has resulted into erratic weather patterns, floods and storms and landslides, malaria epidemics and rampant land wrangles, but who is to blame for all this mess?
Where is the problem?
According to the district natural resources coordinator, Paul Sabiiti, lack of teamwork among land users, politicians and technocrats in the district has weakened the systems that were set up to oversee the conservation policy. According to Sabiiti, the water table has seriously gone down while the little existing water is not clean.
“Where there are contradictions between technocrats and politicians, the land users end up flouting the wetland policy,†Sabiiti explains.
The poor people/peasants are busy clearing the wetlands paving way for cultivation both for cash and food crops especially Irish potatoes while the rich, including government officials are busy expanding farmlands. “If we were all using the same language,†Sabiiti says, “people would respect the policy.â€
According to the residents, the issue of wetland degradation in Kabale dates as far back as the 1970s when the Idi Amin government used to encourage people to use the wetlands for survival by leasing them to cooperative societies to grow both food and cash crops.
Eight cooperative societies which included Nyakabungo Growers, Bugunga Multi-purpose, Ruhuma Cooperative Society, Rurigita, Mukibungo, Katasa Growers, Nyarurambi Growers and Joshua got lease to use wetlands but it is not clear whether these leases have ever been withdrawn from the societies.
But even with the glaring dangers of global warming, the degradation continues unabated.
No political will
The residents also attribute the wetlands degradation to lack of political will, sensitisation and awareness which they blame on the politicians.
“It seems they fear losing support. That is why they keep confusing the peasants as they (peasants) continue to encroach on the wetlands.
We have never heard our leaders talking about environment issues,†says Fringesi Bitungwa, the secretary for information on Nyamuriro Wetland Management Committee.
The residents say with the intervention of Nature Uganda and its programme of the Crane and Wetland Conservation Project since 2005 at Nyamuriro Wetland, they have been able to replant about 9km of the wetland and have been trained to reserve plots or portions of land (within the wetland) where they plant once or twice in a year.
Where do we go?
The people in areas like Muko and Ikumba sub-counties where part of Nyamuriro Wetland has been degraded argue that they cannot leave the wetlands because it is their source of livelihood. “Because the area is hilly, wetlands are our source of everything, especially food,†says James Tibanyendera, the LCI chairman Kanyamatamba village in Muko sub- county. Tibanyendera says compared to other areas (outside Kabale) which favour the growing of food crops like banana, groundnuts, potatoes, cassava and millet, such crops cannot be grown in Kabale because of soil erosion.
Any efforts to control population? The severe shortage of land and food in the area is gradually forcing men to abandon polygamous marriages.
“Family planning is reducing the number of women one should have because of shortage of land. We have also reduced on the number of meals from five to one in a day because there is no food,†Tibanyendera says.
However, Jack Bandagamire, a resident argues that women who would want to use modern methods of family planning fear the side effects.