NRU :: Browsing by Author "Mwesigye Tumusiime, David"

Browsing by Author "Mwesigye Tumusiime, David"

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Are community forests delivering livelihood benefits? Insights from Uganda
(Forests, Trees and Livelihoods, 2021) Mawa, Christopher; Mwesigye Tumusiime, David; Babweteera, Fred
Most developing countries in the tropics have embraced various forms of community-based forest management. Uganda’s Community Forestry (CF) approach grants de jure rights to community groups to manage and own proceeds from specified forest resources to enhance socio-ecological benefits. However, two decades following its implementation, there is insufficient empirical evidence linking changes in local community livelihoods to participation in CF. Guided by insights from the Sustainable Livelihoods Approach (SLA), we conducted a cross-sectional survey in seven villages surrounding two de facto CFs in mid-western Uganda to quantify and compare livelihood capitals, strategies and outcomes among 40 households that were members of Communal Land Associations (CLAs) that are mandated to manage the CFs and 91 non-member households. Our results indicate significant improvements in access to natural, social and financial capitals of CLA member households. On-farm income was the main household income source in the area, but households also exhibited heavy dependence on forest environmental income observed to reduce poverty incidence by 12.5% and 5.5% among CLA member and non-member households, respectively. In order to significantly contribute to rural livelihoods, conservation and development interventions should amplify both economic and non-economic incentives to consolidate the gains that have been made while developing human and physical capital.
Conservation Outcomes of Collaborative Forest Management in a Medium Altitude Semideciduous Forest in Mid-western Uganda
(Journal of Sustainable Forestry, 2020) Mawa, Christopher; Babweteera, Fred; Mwesigye Tumusiime, David
Globally, community involvement in forest management has been hailed as an effective strategy to achieve both conservation and livelihoods improvement goals. In Uganda, Collaborative Forest Management (CFM) has been promoted to enable registered local community groups to co-manage specified areas of state forests with state agencies. However, there is paucity of empirical research evidence on conservation outcomes that are attributable to CFM. To fill this gap, this study used forest inventory data collected in compartments under different forest management regimes (CFM, inactive- CFM, and non-CFM) in 2003 and 2016 to assess spatial and temporal changes in forest structural attributes in a semideciduous forest in mid-western Uganda. Our ordination results show significant changes in tree communities in the non-CFM compartment. The CFM compartment registered a net increase in basal area. We attribute these changes to the high rate of illegal timber extraction and charcoal processing, with signs of the latter only recorded in the inactive- and non-CFM compartments. Illegal timber extraction was perpetuated by powerful outsiders while charcoal processing was dominated by local area residents for cash income. Deliberate management interventions should be instituted to curb illegal human activities and enhance regeneration and recruitment of target tree species in the forest.
Contribution of wetland resources to household food security in Uganda
(Agriculture & Food Security, 2013) Turyahabwe, Nelson; Kakuru, Willy; Tweheyo, Mnason; Mwesigye Tumusiime, David
In Uganda, nearly 1.4 million people are currently food insecure, with the prevalence of food energy deficiency at the country level standing at 37%. Local farmers are vulnerable to starvation in times of environmental stress, drought and floods because of dependence on rain-fed agriculture. Accordingly, the farmer’s means of increasing food production has always been an expansion of area under cultivation from virgin and fragile areas, especially wetlands. Consequently, Uganda has lost about 11,268 km2 of wetland, representing a loss of 30% of the country’s wetlands from 1994 to 2009. While the environmental importance of wetland ecosystems is widely recognized, their contribution to household food security is still hardly explored. In this paper an assessment of the contribution of wetland resources to household food security and factors influencing use of wetland resources in Uganda are reported. Methods: A number of livelihood tools in food security assessment including focus group discussions, key informant interviews, direct observations and a household questionnaire survey, were used to collect the data. A total of 247 respondents from areas adjacent to wetlands were involved in the household questionnaire survey conducted in three agro-ecological zones that are frequently characterized as food insecure. Results: The findings indicate that about 83% of the households experienced food insecurity. The main indicators of food insecurity were low harvest (30.9%) and when people buy locally grown food items (18%). Most households felt food secure when they had perennial crops (43.2%) in their gardens, or adequate money to buy food (23.9%). The prevalence of food insecurity was significantly lower among households with older and better educated household heads, but also among households located in Lake Victoria Crescent and South western farmlands agroecological zones, but significantly higher among households that were female headed, larger and participate in collection of wetland resources. Over 80% of the respondents reported that wetland resources provide products and services that contribute enormously to their household food security. Besides, they also indirectly contribute to food security by providing services that foster food production such as weather modifications and nutrient retention. Households with older heads and those that reside in the Lake Victoria Crescent agro-ecological zone when compared to counterparts in the Lake Kyoga agro-ecological zone are more likely to have a higher dependence on wetlands for food security. Conclusions: With increasing population around the wetlands, coupled with land shortage and weather variations, households with limited options will continue to generally rely on wetlands for food security and income for sustaining their livelihoods unless alternative livelihood options are provided. There is thus a need to design appropriate food production technologies that ensure sustainable use of wetland resources for food security.
Decentralisation of Forest Management — Is it a Panacea to Challenges in Forest Governance in Uganda? Turyahabwe, N., Byakagaba, P., & Tumusiime, D. M. (2015). Decentralisation of Forest Management—Is it a Panacea to Challenges in Forest Governance in Uganda?. In Precious Forests-Precious Earth. IntechOpen.
(In Precious Forests-Precious Earth, 2015) Turyahabwe, Nelson; Byakagaba, Patrick; Mwesigye Tumusiime, David
Decentralisation of forest management is currently implemented in many countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America as a governance strategy aimed at enhancing forest resource conservation, poverty alleviation and equity in forest resource utilisation. In Uganda, the overarching aim of decentralisation of the forest sector was to shift responsibility of forest management to lower elected local government councils so as to increase participation and accountability in the forest sector. In this chapter, we investigate whether decentralisation has led to transfer of “real” power to local authorities and the extent to which the original objectives of decentralised forest service delivery have been achieved and challenges encountered in the implementation. We used questionnaires, unstructured observations and interviews to collect data from three districts of Uganda. We found that District Forest Departments of local government are mostly involved in revenue generating activities and protection of local forest reserves with only a very limited focus on activities that endear people towards participation in the management of local forest reserves. Power sharing of District Local Governments with lower local institutions and local communities is extremely limited. Contradictory policies about forest resource governance, inequitable sharing of revenues generated from forest resources between the District and Sub-county governments, rent seeking and political corruption amongst actors who are charged with forest law enforcement are the major challenges in dispensing decentralised forest governance. There is need to increase space for citizen participation in the management of forest resources, holding accountable of the duty bearers and equity.
Defects of Tourism Revenue Sharing Policies and Practices in East Africa
(Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal, 2019) Mwesigye Tumusiime, David; Byakagaba, Patrick
Sharing of tourism revenues with local communities has for long been regarded as a key instrument in the arsenal for contemporary conservation. The approach is favored for its ability to simultaneously deliver both conservation and rural development moreover in mutually reinforcing ways. This paper reviews literature covering the practice at Protected Areas (PAs) in East Africa and a number of critical inadequacies are revealed. These include the marginal scale of benefits as observed in an evaluation of a regional project where per capita investment averaged only $ 0.36 over a five year period (2006-2010). Moreover, these revenues are frequently invested in public assets (e.g. schools and roads) which communities have limited appreciation of on the argument that these should be primary responsibilities of national and local governments to whose coffers the communities contribute through taxation. Even when individual households are targeted through household level projects, the sharing is plagued by a variety of governance failures including elite capture, and distributive inequity where for example the poor (the lower two to three quintiles) tend to be excluded. Inequity also exists at community level where some local administrative units are marginalized, and in other instances the revenues are used to reward loyalty while also there is a significant leakage of revenues along the vertical distribution chain of local government implementing the revenue sharing. Thus a lot remains to be done if these schemes for sharing tourism revenues are to deliver as premised. There is need to substantially increase the magnitude of the local share which then must be secured by competent and legitimate, but closely supervised, local institutions to ensure equitable distribution between and within local communities.
Discovery of Oil: Community Perceptions and Expectations in Uganda’s Albertine Region
(Journal of Sustainable Development, 2018) Mwesigye Tumusiime, David; Mawejje, Joseph; Byakagaba, Patrick
This study was conducted to interrogate local perceptions and expectations from the discovery of oil in the Albertine Graben of Uganda. We interviewed 50 residents (30 men and 20 women) from Butiaba and Wanseko (Buliisa district), Kyehoro and Kabaale villages (Hoima district). The villages were purposively selected to have a representation of the districts in the Albertine region where Oil discovery activities are currently being implemented but also to explore any differences in perceptions that may be linked to livelihood options of the respondents. We applied narrative analysis. Overall, we observed minimal pessimism as residents expressed concerns over environmental degradation, political tensions and land conflicts following oil activities, but there was a dominance of optimism as communities envisaged that the oil industry will create employment, infrastructural development, improved access to electricity, and enhanced social status. The findings demonstrated that communities living in areas where extractive resources such as oil and gas have been discovered tend to be more optimistic with very minimal pessimism in their expectations during the phase of upstream activities of the oil value chain. The findings challenge the dominant narrative that residents where energy development and other land use changes are being implemented tend to have negative expectations -a phenomenon known as NIMBY (Not-In- My-Back-Yard). We identify the need to develop strong institutional frameworks that harness benefits from oil to improve local livelihoods without compromising the environment and enhancing participation of locals in decision making processes.
Elephant damage and tree response in restored parts of Kibale National Park, Uganda
(International Journal of Biodiversity and Conservation, 2013) Tweheyo, Mnason; Mwesigye Tumusiime, David; Muhairwe, Timothy; Twinomuhangi, Revocatus
Elephant tree damage is a key factor in conservation and restoration efforts of African rain forests. This study was conducted between June 2009 and February 2010 to examine elephant damage and tree response in restored parts of Kibale National Park, a rain forest in Uganda. First gazetted as Forest Reserve in 1932, the area had its southern block settled and degraded through human utilization between 1970 and 1987. In 1992, the government of Uganda relocated the settled people and embarked on a restoration process. Whereas, trees such as Ficus species exhibited high coping abilities to elephant damage through re-sprouting, coppicing and bark recovery; Prunus Africana struggled because it is highly preferred by elephant for feeding and is also demanded by humans. Whereas, options that can minimize elephant damage through selective planting of less desired species may be successful, these will deflect the problem of elephant damage to local farmers through experiences of increased crop raiding as the animals search for preferred forage. A more accommodative approach that includes desirable species which can cope with damage; and the protection of endangered species that happen to be desired by both humans and elephant may be more rewarding.
Gender differentiated vulnerability to climate change in Eastern Uganda
(Climate and Development, 2019) Balikoowa, Kenneth; Nabanoga, Gorettie; Mwesigye Tumusiime, David; Mbogga, Michael S.
Climate change literature is rife with the assertion that women are more vulnerable to climate change, which state is expected to reflect on female-headed households. However, this assertion has however not been empirically proven aside from the general poverty-gender linkages. This study used primary data collected in 2016 from 735 randomly selected households from four districts in Eastern Uganda to construct a gender vulnerability index to compare and explain the drivers of vulnerability between male and female-headed households. The results show that female-headed households were more vulnerable (GVI-IPCC = −0.134) than male-headed households (GVI-IPCC = −0.176). The results further show that disparity in adaptive capacity mediates vulnerability between male and female-headed households. This underscores the importance of proactive interventions rather than protectionist approaches to reducing vulnerability. The study has extended the analytical utility of the livelihood vulnerability index to create a gender vulnerability index for comparing contextual groups of households in Eastern Uganda.
Predicting Attitudes towards Protected Area Management in a Developing Country Context
(Journal of Sustainable Development, 2018) Mwesigye Tumusiime, David; Byakagaba, Patrick; Tweheyo, Mnason; Turyahabwe, Nelson
Biodiversity conservation through use of protected areas relies significantly on the attitudes of local adjacent communities. Some studies suggest that attitudes are often shaped by the associated positive and negative externalities and socio-demographic and economic characteristics of local communities living adjacent to protected areas. The current study sought to identify useful predictors of local attitudes towards protected area management. It was conducted at Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in Uganda where several interventions in form of benefits to improve local people’s attitudes towards the park have been implemented for the last 30 years. The study examined the extent to which these benefits can influence local people’s attitude towards management of the Protected Area (PA). A household survey was conducted among 190 randomly selected respondents and Generalised Linear Mixed Models (GLMMs) fitted where the dependent variable was a binary “Good” or “otherwise” response to how the respondent considered own relationship with park management. Socio-economic attributes of the respondents were used as control variables. The importance of cost variables (e.g. crop raiding) was also examined. The study found that only direct and material benefits were consistent predictors of a positive attitude towards management. Non-material and indirect benefits as well as the socio-economic factors and costs did not influence the attitude of local communities towards management. It can be concluded that positive attitude towards protected area management is determined by access to direct and material benefits by local communities and not socio-economic factors or costs incurred. Interventions intended to influence local communities to have a positive attitude towards management ought to emphasize direct and material benefits.
Wetland Use/Cover Changes and Local Perceptions in Uganda
(Sustainable Agriculture Research, 2013) Turyahabwe, Nelson; Mwesigye Tumusiime, David; Kakuru, Willy; Barasa, Bernard
With increasing population, coupled with land shortage and weather variations, wetlands in Uganda have continued to face degradation due to mainly conversion for agricultural, industrial and settlement purposes. The objective of this study was to determine the spatial and temporal wetland use/cover changes and local perceptions attributed to these changes. The study utilized three sets of ortho-rectified and cloud free Landsat TM/ETM+/MSS temporal images (30 m) of 1986, 2000 and 2011. The classification procedures were carried out using an Integrated Land and Water Information System (ILWIS) software version 3.7. A wetland classification system for Uganda developed by the National Biomass Study, 2003 was adopted to describe the wetland use/cover types. The classified images were validated in a ground truthing exercise using Global Positioning System (GPS) to improve on the classification accuracy. Key informant interviews and focus group discussions were conducted with communities adjacent to the wetlands in each of three of the ten Ugandan agro-ecological zones to determine the underlying drivers of wetland use/cover changes, while household interviews generated information on local perceptions of the changes. Significant changes were mainly observed in wetland use/cover between 1986 and 2011. Major factors responsible for these changes were subsistence farming due to intensification of growing paddy rice in Kyoga plains, an influx of migrants who accessed wetlands for daily subsistence (livestock grazing) in South western farmlands and proximity to urban centres in the Lake Victoria Crescent. In all the sampled agro-ecological zones, increased crop farming in wetlands was due to changing opportunities created by existent large markets for wetland crops. Majority (60%) of the local people perceived wetlands in their proximity to have undergone high degradation within the last 10 years, and to have declined in quantity and quality of vegetation, soil fertility and water levels. There was a noticeable variation across the sampled agro-ecological zones, with the highest proportion of local communities perceiving degradation being in Kyoga plains (76%), followed by Lake Victoria crescent (63%) and South-western farmlands (41%). Locally perceived threats to wetlands were mainly from crop growing that accounted for 33% of the frequency of mentioned threats, collection of wetland resources (30%), and prolonged floods and droughts (12%). This study confirms the importance of economic opportunities from new market outlets and migration in its various forms as key factors in land use change, especially at timescales of a couple of decades.
Wildlife damage and control methods around Lake Mburo National Park, Uganda
(International Journal of Pest Management, 2012) Tweheyo, Mnason; Mwesigye Tumusiime, David; Turyahabwe, Nelson; Asiimwe, Asaph; Orikiriza, Lawrence
This study documents the different management and control measures developed and implemented by farmers to mitigate vertebrate pest attacks on crops and livestock around Lake Mburo National Park in Uganda. A semistructured interview administered to 40 randomly selected park neighbours was supplemented with key informant interviews, a review of secondary data, and direct observations of vertebrate pest problems and their management. All participant farmers had experienced some damage from vertebrate pests. Bushpigs ranked as the most destructive to crops, while leopards were most destructive to livestock. Most damage occurred during severe dry seasons. The most common methods for combating pests were guarding, fencing, and poisoning. Physical guarding was perceived as being the most effective method; however, there were reports of pest resurgence, which varied between pest species, seasons, and methods used. Bushpigs showed the greatest resistance against control measures. Control efforts were found to be tedious and time-consuming, and they created the possibility for the transfer of infectious diseases from pests to humans. We recommend conscious efforts to augment local control methods so as to enhance both biodiversity conservation and farm production.
Wildlife Snaring in Budongo Forest Reserve, Uganda
(Human Dimensions of Wildlife, 2010) Mwesigye Tumusiime, David; Eilu, Gerald; Tweheyo, Mnason; Babweteera, Fred
Snaring is an indiscriminate vertebrate trapping method that has maimed more than 36% of an estimated 700 resident chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) of Budongo Forest Reserve. This study was conducted in two phases to assess this problem. First, we administered questionnaires to 240 randomly selected households in villages around the reserve to look at socioeconomic and cultural contexts within which snares are set. Second, hunters identified in the first phase were purposefully selected for deeper discussions into snaring; 12% of the farmers set snares. Logistic regression showed a significant relationship between snaring and socioeconomic variables such as education. Hunters considered bushmeat an integral part of their livelihood and thus, snaring may continue or increase from current levels. Alternative sources of protein and cash for local people will be necessary to offset snaring problems. Conservationists need to address in-forest diversity and strategies that improve food security and income for forest edge communities.

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