Women stage protest over Bugoma forest

ENVIRONMENT | BUGOMA FOREST 

Despite the inter-ministerial order to halt all activities in Bugoma Forest in advance of the boundary opening, there is growing concern that Hoima Sugar's management is still clearing the forest for sugarcane growing.

This has prompted women living around the forest and activists to stage peaceful demonstrations to express their dissatisfaction with the manner in which the Government is handling the matter.

The women recently held placards, some reading, "No more sex until Bugoma is saved" while denouncing the destruction of the forest.

Other placards read: "Indian High Commission speak up — your citizens are finishing Bugoma. We already have enough sugar, Hoima sugar you are a liability to us. My forest — my medicine — my life, No Bugoma no breathing — without Bugoma I cannot conceive."

Residents speak out

Catherine Tuhaise, from Kikuube district, said Bugoma is her life because she derives a lot from it.

"We are housewives who depend entirely on this forest and our worry is that when it is cut down, our crops will eventually fail," she said.

Jenerose Tumuramye, from Kaseeta village, said the wild animals that inhabit the forest would descend on their crops once the forest is cut down.

Demands

Sostine Namanya, the gender and food security officer for the National Association of Professional Environmentalists, told New Vision that the women came up with a statement aimed at various actors in a bid to save Bugoma.

Among the demands, the women said the Government should protect international public goods (food security, water supply and biodiversity) by saving the forest reserve.

The Government should also respect the women's rights on land and cancel land titles within Bugoma Forest and call for an audit in the lands ministry and punish those who have titles in such areas.

"The Government should ensure that all cadastral maps for Bugoma forest are shared publicly so that the boundaries are known," Amanya said.

The women said the Government should understand that they feel the impact of the degradation of the forest degradation acutely because they are responsible for growing food, and collecting water.

"Government should respect women as initial land rights defenders who have been protecting the land through land use and boundary marking and, therefore, involve them in Bugoma forest boundary demarcation," read the statement.

The women also demanded that Hoima Sugar Limited stop the development of sugarcane growing in the area.

Demonstrations 

The demonstration attracted people from different walks of life, including grassroot women who derive their livelihoods from the forest.

They included women from Kaseeta, Kiziranfumbi, Butimba, Wambabya and Kigaga and Kabwooya.

Others were members of collaborative forest management/tree planting associations, herbalists, National Forest Authority and the Bugoma community.

The reserve is a tropical high forest located in Kisindi sector, Kikuube district with a small portion in Hoima district covering an area of 41,144 hectares.

It is home to over 500 chimpanzees, 201 recorded bird species, and a special species of primates called the Ugandan mangabeys.

The reserve has been cut off from Budongo Forest, with reserve patches of Bujawe and Wambabya forests being the only corridors left.

The landscape of the forest reserve is characterised by medium altitude semideciduous forest.

About half of the forested section is dominated by ironwood, scientifically known as Cynometra Alexandri and locally known as muhimbi.

Bugoma forest's attractions

Bugoma Forest Reserve is a biodiversity hotspot that is worth exploring by tourists.

The forest hosts an astonishing diversity of flora and fauna species.

The reserve is a central conservation forest which is the 12th of the top places of importance out of the 65 forests studied for biodiversity.

It is also the 17th among forests with exceptional species. There are currently over 34 species of mammals, including four globally threatened mammal species.

There are nine mammal species listed on IUCN's red list that live within the Bugoma Forest Reserve.

It is estimated that about 600 chimpanzees live within the forest.

Other mammals that call the forest reserve home include buffaloes, bush elephants, Uganda kobs, golden cats and side-stripped jackals among others.

There are nine species of reptiles, over 257 tree and shrub species including seven species that are Albertine Rift endemics, more than 12 species that are globally threatened and 14 tree species on IUCN's red list.

Bugoma Forest Reserve is also a home to 20 species of amphibians including one species that is endemic to the Albertine Rift, 118 species of moths, 292 species of butterflies that include four species endemic to the Albertine Rift Mountains.

There are over 225 bird species that have been recorded in the forest and these include several Guinea-Congo Biome bird species.

Two of the noteworthy globally threatened bird species within the reserve include the black-eared ground thrush (also known as zoothera camaronensis) and Nahan's francolin (Francolinus nahani).

The forest is a biodiversity hotspot with a variety of flora and fauna. It hosts over 34 species of mammals which include chimpanzees, grey-cheeked mangabeys, black and white colobus monkeys, and blue monkeys.

The reserve also hosts nine species of reptiles, over 257 tree and shrub species including 20 species of amphibians, 118 species of moths, 292 species of butterflies and over 225 bird species.