Bushenyi adopts community-centred approach to save wetlands

Local leaders in Bushenyi District have adopted a community-centred approach to save wetlands and other natural resources from degradation.

The leaders are convinced that if undertaken, the strategy which includes sensitization of communities on sustainable use of resources, will yield fruits in the environmental protection and green agenda in the area.

The Bushenyi Resident District Commissioner, Ms Jane Asiimwe Muhindo says the strategy was agreed upon by the district security council at the beginning of August 2022 as an effort towards restoration of the degraded environment especially wetlands after they realized that the vice was becoming a security threat in the area.

“The president has been vocal on wetland restoration and protection by issuing a number of directives from time to time. Also as a district security committee, we looked at ongoing environmental degradation as a security matter. So, we agreed to engage communities in conserving their own environment,” she said.

The RDC has in regard to the matter written to all sub-county chairpersons to convene emergency security meetings to take stock of intact and degraded wetlands and encroachers in their areas of jurisdiction with an aim of demonstrating to communities the leader’s commitment to wetlands conservation.

“Environmental conservation is not a role of the RDC or President. We must all combine efforts. We have embarked on engaging communities and mobilizing them to understand the advantages of sustainable use of wetlands and the environment in general. When they understand this, they will cooperate and we have a bigger percentage of wetlands saved from encroachment,” she told the Monitor on Tuesday

The Minister of Presidency, Ms Milly Babirye Babalanda recently wrote a circular reminding RDC of their mandate to rid wetlands of all encroachers.

“I wish nonetheless remind you of the presidential directive of ridding our wetlands of all encroachers especially those who are attempting to return there,” the circular read in part

The Bushenyi district Senior environment officer, Mr Vincent Kataate says community-led restoration efforts will bring about change because effective sensitization is being done and once people understand conservation, they will not destroy the resources.

He, however, expressed pessimism about the strategy saying their office lacks enough financial resources to monitor conservation and restoration activities across the district.

“The communities are supportive, the political wing and security are supportive apart from a few logistical issues. The natural resource department is less funded. We are having logistics challenges. For example, when we restore, we sometimes take a long time to monitor. In most cases, the restored places are again attacked," he noted.

The approach seeks to build community networks that can collaborate and mobilize for conservation and restoration, ensure stronger compliance, promote reformation, revitalize environmental protection laws and have strong support from the local leadership from village to district level, according to the RDC.

Mr Jafari Basajabalaba, the Bushenyi District chairperso said efforts to restore the environment should be packaged with water source protection interventions so that communities keep accessing water.

“I have always called upon the public and government to think a lot about water source protection. We need to encourage water entities to protect water sources. This goes together with whatever conservation and restoration effort. National water should protect water sources because if they don’t, all projects will be white elephants in the near future due to environmental degradation,” he said.