As drought worsens in south-western Uganda, local pastoralists herd thousands of cattle through Lake Mburo National Park to access the area’s only constant water supply, resulting in the detriment of natural vegetation and increased risks of zootoxic disease passing between the cattle and wildlife. For your wildlife safaris visit African Secrets Limited.

But Mr Moses Mapesa the UWA – Uganda Wildlife Authority  Executive Director,  said: “We have a collaborative mechanism whereby during drought we allow the pastoralists to access water.”

He added that he is not overly concerned that the cattle will bring in diseases.
But Mr Achilles Byaruhanga, the Executive Director of Nature Uganda, the East African Natural History Society, is concerned about the possible spread of zoonotic diseases from the cattle to the wildlife. “This overlap needs to be managed very carefully,” he said – For your Kenya Safari

There are over 15,000 cows accessing the park from farmers located mostly in Sanga, Kanyaryeru and Nyakashashara sub-counties.

A South African tourist who recently visited the park expressed concern to that disease has already set in to the wildlife populations.
“In three days, I found six [wild animal] carcasses,” she said with pictures to prove it. Of course dead animals are hardly an abnormality in the wild and in Lake Mburo, but the woman reported that none of them seemed to have been killed by other animals as there were no kill markings or signs of a fight – African Safari Kenya

The carcasses were covered in vultures but she saw no signs of any carnivores such as hyenas or jackals, another strange observance. “All the animals are sick with something and no one wants to eat [them],” she hypothesized.

The tourist also reported that none of the cattle in the park were marked. She questioned whether they had been treated for diseases such as anthrax, brucellosis, tuberculosis, foot and mouth disease, rinder pest, and trypanosomiasis.

When asked about the strange animal deaths however, Mr Mapesa said he has not heard any such reports.
“If there was a problem I would know,” he said in an interview.

The Chief Park Warden, Mr Augustine Masereka, also reported by phone that there had been no unusual deaths – gorilla tours

Still, if disease did take root among the wildlife it could prove disastrous. While domestic animals can be treated for disease, Mr Byaruhanga explained that when diseases get into wildlife, then there is no opportunity for treating them.”
As for the wildlife, the drought presents enough of a concern in itself even without the risk of disease.
When visiting visited the park, a Ranger Guide said that drought takes its toll on the zebra population particularly, because mineral deficits for lack of pasture, thirst, and their weakened states.
“Many zebras here die when it’s a severe drought like it has been,” he said, adding that, “In this dry season more than six, and up to 10, zebras can die every week – gorilla trekking Uganda

According to the Lake Mburo, Research and Monitoring Warden, Dr Eric Enyel, zebras are the second most populous animal in the park at 13,000, second only to the 30,000 impalas, all of which are in some way affected by the long dry spells that this cattle corridor has experienced for some time now.

“In this dry season more than six and up to 10 zebras can die every week and depend on water during the dry season, yet they move away long distances. They may spend three days trying to locate water points without success and they die. Even when they locate sources they get stuck in mud from where they die because water in some of the sources is drying up,” added Dr Enyel.

“Bush fires and dry spells are the biggest problems affecting animals here,” said Dr Enyel, adding that the current situation is not any different from those in other national parks across the country.

The presence of the cattle, however, does present another threat to the park, where both domestic and wild animals now compete for the same food and water.

Although complicated by drought conditions, this competition highlights a deeper tension over land and resources between the park and local communities, many of whom were relocated from inside park boundaries during the Obote Government and in the years afterwards.

At one point, the park was even reduced in size by almost half in order to ease tensions by giving more land to the local communities – Gorilla trekking Rwanda

Mr Byaruhanga sees that reduction as a mistake.  “To me, that was [an] oversight, because the animals were basically squeezed,” he told Saturday Monitor, describing the area as a “wild zoo” since the animals are so constricted.
Some animals have even been poisoned by local farmers.
“This is one of the problems of mixing wildlife and domestic animals,” said Mr Byaruhanga. He said the hyena population has particularly been affected greatly by this. A park ranger guide said that even during the wet season; farmers with small grazing grounds can pay Shs50,000 to park authorities for permission for their cattle to graze inside the park, despite the fact that this is illegal – Masai Mara safari

The UWA is currently in the middle of a project to return to grassland parts of Lake Mburo overrun by acacia trees and is clearing huge quantities of wood out of the park.
Mr Mapesa said that cutting the trees is an intervention measure since acacia growth is no longer naturally managed by animals.

“We are trying to intervene to try and get back the [savannah] ecosystem,” he said.
Mr Byaruhanga believes that conflict over the park will only increase in coming years as the population continues growing and require more resources. However, he is also hopeful that the government will place a stronger priority on tourism and take necessary steps to protect the animals – Tanzania safari

For more on Uganda’s tourism please visit the Uganda tourism guide

The Batwa are a pygmy tribe in the western region of Uganda who still live a pre-historic lifestyle – a life of hunting and gathering in search of food for survival. However, these people were located in some the protected areas of Uganda such as the Bwindi impenetrable forest national park renown for gorilla tours and the Semiliki wildlife reserve in the west of Uganda.  In their hunting and gathering they often used the trees and vegetation as shelter, however, as time went on they erected temporary huts by day in the game reserves – Uganda Safari

In the 1990’s the Uganda wildlife Authority drove out about 70 Batwa people from the Semiliki wildlife reserve as they were poaching on some the wildlife in the reserve according the body charged with protecting Uganda’s wildlife. According to the King, Nzito Geoffrey, they hunted for wildlife in the reserve while they resettled on the edge of the national park. Life however got a little hard when the Uganda Wildlife Authority completely restricted hunting in the national parks and the surrounding land was also curved out to individuals who could afford. Uganda

In 2007 however, a local Non-governmental Organization known as RWIDE – Rural Welfare Improvement For Development which is based in the district of Kyenjojo came to the rescue of the Batwa with a project – the Batwa Homestead. Given its goal of improving the impoverished lives of the Batwa people, the European Union gave them a grant of about 43,885 Euros which is approximately 100 million Uganda shillings.

This fund was supposed to be used for the procurement of chucks of land for the Batwa people in the village of Bundimasoli in Kasitu sub-country found in the district of Bundibugyo.  It was also supposed to be used to construct a settlement of approximately 22 houses that are semi-permanent with iron sheet roofing and good sanitary facilities such as pit latrines to cater for an estimated 90 inhabitants.
However, the Uganda Police have now opened up an inquiry into project after complaints from the Batwa people and the European Union. The director of RWIDE Mr. Mubiru Vincent is being investigated according to Mr. Asaba Nelson from the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) in Bundibugyo.  The Batwa people allege that Mr. Mubiru misused the funds intended to develop the settlement.

According to Mr. Jose Soler, the head of the European Union Cooperation they are looking into the matter after receiving complaints. He further said that the European Commission has even internal procedures to investigate any misappropriation of funds.

The supposed settlement is currently littered with human excrement and instead of the 22 semi-permanent structures that were supposed to be built there are only 14 with only one pit latrine serving an estimated population of 90 residents.

The construction work however leaves a lot to be desired given that the doors are loosely fitted with huge gaps in the doors. According to their King, Mr. Mubiru was supposed to involve them in the implementation of the project however, he didn’t and the police say there is a discrepancy in the exchange rate he used when asked about the sum of money spent.

The Batwa have also been evacuated from Bwindi impenetrable national park which is renown for gorilla trekking and their plight has been noticed by different humanitarian groups as the different communities where they have tried to settle now look on them as lazy and dirty people.

The quick change in life from hunting and gathering food to modern life is not easy and this has left many of the Batwa people in a situation where fending for food is not as easy as previously. Howeve, the European Union and other organizations are beginning to start other projects to alleviate the plight of the Batwa.

The Uganda wildlife Authority has also embarked on community tourism so the Batwa can benefit from the protection of the wildlife areas around the park. It is not uncommon to find Uganda tour packages consisting of a visit or community walk among the Batwa people.

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Kampala At 7:30 every morning Mr Jonathan Wright is at his Uganda safari company office where he reads and answers his mails. He then conducts a meeting with his sales and marketing staff, brainstorming and developing ideas on how to better his various business ventures. At ten o’clock he heads to his Emin Pasha Hotel where he holds another meeting with his staff, this time discussing menus. This is a typical everyday routine for Mr Wright. Seventeen years ago he came back to Uganda on an invitation from the Ugandan government. Mr Wright explored the various tourism opportunities. His first activity was to build a low-impact environmentally sensitive safari lodge in the middle of the Semliki Valley Wildlife Reserve (formerly the Toro Game Reserve) in Western Uganda. As this area had been terribly poached during Uganda’s troubled years, this project needed concerted conservation efforts and Green Wilderness Group went to work raising donations to help save the wildlife reserve. Finally the reserve opened in 1997 and is now one of the most visited reserves in Uganda. However Mr Wright admits that it has not been a smooth running after the construction of Semliki. ADF rebels invaded the park .This put a huge strain on the young business since tourists were not willing to risk their lives visiting the park. The next four years were a struggle. It got so tough that at some point Mr Wright shuffled visitors from Serena Hotel on fishing trips to Lake Victoria on his boat. “It got very rough the business was not bringing any income and I had to maintain my staff and pay the bills,” Mr Wright says. In 1994 Mr Wright had another setback, this time it was the Rwandan genocide. “During the Rwanda genocide most western countries that we rely on had already issued travel advisories to their citizens but the situation got worse when bodies started floating in Lake Victoria,” he says. He adds that by this time no one was willing to travel partly due to the situation in Rwanda but mostly it was due to ignorance because most of them have no idea about Africa thinking that it is one big country. Despite all this Mr Wright did not quit instead he continued to invest in tourism and conservation to build a name for his company both locally and abroad. Having pulled through the challenges himself he offers insights on how to survive on a business such as his. He explains that one should be ready to market themselves and their product. Marketing is not a one-off activity to solve business problems. It is a process and should be part of your everyday business activities. Marketing has to do with: Creating something which potential customers want. Offering your product in a place which is convenient and attractive to customers. Offering your product at a price which is reasonable and fair. Letting potential customers know about your product through the many forms of communication. Attending local and international exhibitions. Then there is marketing mix, which looks at the four main factors that need to be considered to make your business successful:- Product This may be a room at your guesthouse, a tour, or a restaurant meal. It is what people want to buy, that meets their specific needs. Price The next is price which is one that people are prepared to pay for your product. Getting the right price is crucial. A reasonable price is one which offers the customer value for their money.3 Place The product has to be accessible and available to customers so that they can buy it. Promotions The fourth of your marketing mix is promotion. Once you have the right product, at the right price and in the right place, you need to promote it. It is a must to let your customers know that you have a product ready to be purchased. Above all Mr Wright insists that one should be thick- skinned focused on the set goals to make it like he has. For your Uganda safari, Kenya safari, Tanzania safari and Rwanda safari

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THE MINISTRIES OF HEALTH AND TOURISM NEED TO START FIXING ROADS

Uganda is seeing a lot of changes in terms of infrastructure development and this can be seen in the area of road construction, be it that they are in a sorry state most of the time. It is this increase in the number of roads in the countryside that is causing lots of problems especially for the wildlife. These roads are being constructed without regard for the wildlife populations and migratory habits. There has not been a lot of environmental assessment when it comes to constructing roads. These have led to reckless and indiscriminate encroachment on protected areas such as wildlife national parks and forests resulting in a disruption of the traditional migratory corridors of wildlife that will definitely begin to use different routes in their seasonal search for better habitats.

Another problem that these reckless and ill-thought developments are doing is that they lead to settlements developing along these roads and eventual human settlement in these forests and national parks. This has led to the increase in the number of poachers who have in some cases completely disrupted the migratory patterns of wildlife.

It is also important to note that the increase in the number of road in our Uganda’s wildlife reserves and forests have led to an exponential rise in the number of road kills which has great repercussions such a the death of orphaned fawns and fowl. The death of one mother leads to the death of many young ones. This is also used by many poachers who are netted with wildlife carcasses who claim that they are road-kills.

Another think to consider is the trenches that are constructed along the highways to channel rainwater along the roads to the wetlands. These trenches have acted as death traps for many of the herds of elephants, buffaloes, giraffes and other species of terrestrial animals that move from place. It is not uncommon to see a buffalo or elephant calf in one of these trenches having been left behind after failing to climb out of these death traps. Those that manage to climb out of these sometimes do so with broken limbs and it is not unusual to see some elephants, buffaloes and giraffes walking with limps. This further exposes them to attack by predatory wildlife like lions, cheetahs and leopards. The presence of predators in the wildlife reserves is important in getting rid of weaker and ill-health wildlife, however, the death of healthy, strong wildlife is a danger to the increase in the population of these herds of wildlife.

Uganda is earning heavily from tourism toping as one of the major 3 foreign exchange earners’ for the country. It is such a shame that the ministry of tourism in collaboration with the ministry of works, transport and communication are doing little to recognize the importance of wildlife preservation for this country and future generations. It is only fair that part of the money being earned from tourism be injected back into increasing the protection of wildlife. It is imperative that the ministry of finance allocate a significant percentage in the 2009/2010 budget towards improving tourism and creating wildlife crossing points along the major migratory routes that have been interrupted by road construction.

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We all romanticize Africa which represents wildness and space, vast horizons and shimmering red sunsets, powerful images we do not want shattered. Overall, the variety and abundance of wildlife in Africa, as elsewhere around the world, is shrinking fast as human population grows and encroaches ever more on once wild and pristine landscapes.
Nature relies on delicate balances of plant and animal life to remain healthy. When one part of that equation is altered, our flora and fauna can be put in danger. Although change is a natural part of our evolving world, changes that occur at a pace that is too rapid has a disastrous effect on individual species of plants and animals.
As you are no doubt aware, many animals are close to extinction in most African countries. Primates, mammals, reptiles and birds are killed in thousands every year. This practice is unsustainable and species are rapidly becoming threatened, endangered and extinct. The black rhino is one of Africa’s most endangered species, suffering in particular from the ravages of poaching. While illegal hunting (known in Africa as “poaching”) still runs rampant despite government crackdowns, the spread of logging and agriculture contributes even more to the decline of many species of large mammals.
It has become evident to many conservationists that a complete change of approach is the only chance for the long term survival of Africa’s animals. Local people must be included in the process, working to better understand these threats and safeguard Africa’s biodiversity for future generations.
The survival of our wildlife is a matter of grave concern to all of us in Africa. These wild creatures amid the wild places they inhabit are not only important as a source of wonder and inspiration, but are an integral part of our natural resources and of our future livelihood and well being.
Nature lovers, tour operators, hotel owners, and all concerned parties need to increase the understanding of wildlife values. We need to conserve to make certain we have resources for ourselves and for people in the future. Conservation will allow future generations to enjoy natural resources such as clean rivers and lakes, wilderness areas, a diverse wildlife population, healthy soil, and clean air.
It may be difficult to imagine that we could ever run out of fresh water, clean air, and good soil for growing food. But in some places this is already happening.
There is still a lot of work to be done through policy support initiatives aimed at integrating the communities and sensitizing them to appreciate the values and benefits of conservation.
We need to take examples of Jane Goodall who has helped protect chimpanzees in Africa. , John Muir who helped pioneer the idea of National Parks in the United States, Anna Merz who has worked to ensure the survival of black rhinoceroses in Kenya, Laurie Marker who has helped people understand the importance of protecting cheetahs in Africa.

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