After a long-standing commitment to conservation, Uganda has increased its numbers of wild animals in the last two decades.
This has been observed by the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) as a remarkable achievement. The wildlife agency and Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) received NEMA’s prestigious National Sustainable Environment Award. The award is given by NEMA it is going to be an annual award.
“UWA has been outstanding regarding effectiveness in environmental management,” said Naomi Karekaho, the head of corporate communications at NEMA, adding that UWA was top among the government ministries, departments, and agencies.
This is a collective effort by the government, as well as its international and local partners, civil society organizations such as the World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF), the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), and development partners such as UNDP, USAID, and the World Bank.
“As an institution, we have been focusing on better wildlife management. Our vision is to become a global leader in conservation,” says Sam Mwandha, UWA’s executive director. “We know we cannot be there without the parks and animals.” We want visitors, and we want them to come when wildlife is even better. It motivates us to work better and provide services.”
While the number of wild animals is increasing, Uganda’s wild animal population in the 1960s remains unmatched.
“There is no way we can go back to the numbers of the 1960s,” says Mwandha, adding that land for wildlife, particularly outside the protected areas, is declining every day. “We had a lot of habitats outside the protected areas, which is not the case today.”
He added, “There are many cases of human wildlife conflict because the human population have settled in animal corridors where animals are supposed to cross from one protected area to another.”
Mwandha described the population of wildlife as a mixed bag pointing out that some species have dramatically increased. “When you look at the Uganda kob and buffaloes, the numbers are higher than the 1960 numbers,” says Mwandha. “We have a problem with lions; the numbers are estimated to be below 400.”
The population of the elephants increased from 5,739 in 2011-2014 to 5,808 in 2015-2017 and then 7,959 in 2018-2020 and declined to 6,464 in 2021-2023, according to UWA’s census report.
UWA’s chief also pointed out that sustainability is a bigger thing than just wildlife numbers. He emphasized the importance of tourism in generating the necessary funds for conservation.
UWA outcompeted the National Forest Authority and the Directorate of Water Resource Management in the awards given to government ministries and departments.
The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), which is a leader in research, was outstanding among non-state actors in the sustainability management award.
In terms of development partners, the United Nations Development Programme was outstanding. They were ahead of Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, United States Agency International Development.
According to Dr. Barirega Akankwasah, the executive director of NEMA, sustainability entails developing policies and practices that guarantee the efficient and responsible use of resources for the benefit of future generations.
NEMA Awardees
Other awardees included Hopo Trading Limited in recognition of exceptional management of wastewater, chrome, and solid waste, and Hima Cement Tororo in recognition of consistent implementation of air pollution control measures.
NEMA also recognised Kakira Sugar Limited for their exceptional management of wastewater, bagasse, and molasses; Cipla Quality Chemical Industries Limited for their exceptional management of active chemicals in wastewater and particulate matter; and Jesa Farm Dairy Farm Limited for their exceptional management of wastewater.
Also awarded were Kansai Plascon in recognition of exceptional management of water and chemical waste; Luwero Industries Ltd. in recognition of exceptional dedication to solid waste management; and Uganda Breweries Ltd.
Other recipients included Total Energies EP Uganda, which was recognized for its robust environment management and monitoring systems; Vivo Energies, for its environment management and sustainability campaigns; Gulu City, for its exceptional plastic waste management; Stanbic Bank Bank Uganda, for their contributions and passion for environmental conservation; and Vision Group Uganda, for their outstanding environmental print coverage. Moses Kidandi was awarded for his outstanding commitment to impactful environmental reporting and coverage.
