Natural Sciences

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Genetic viability of Nabugabo lakes (LVR satellite lakes) fish species
(Wetlands Inspection Division, 2001) Waiswa Mwanja, Wilson
Natural populations of fish species in Lake Victoria Region (LVR) have under gone dramatic changes including severe reduction in sizes, division of original stocks into disjunct subunits, and segregation into several isolated population units either within a single water body or even worse into separate waters. In addition, these changes have been either preceded or precipitated by introductions of non-indigenous species that outcompeted the native forms and in case of closely related species genetically swamped them through hybridisation. The latter is especially the case in Nabugabo Jakes. Such events lead to fragmentation of populations, which results in reduction in genetic diversity due to genetic drift, inbreeding and reduced or lack of gene flow among independent units. Such phenomena make the continued existence of fisheries stocks in the wild precarious, more so in the face of the competition from exotic species. Species introductions coupled with growing exploitation pressure of the fisheries ofthese lakes have put the native stocks at risk. Nabugabo lakes harbour cichlid species that are unique to these lakes more so species of the cichlid complex. In this paper the ecological status and genetic viability of key Nabugabo lakes fish species is examined and management options are discussed.
Geothermal Energy in Uganda, Country Update
(In International Geothermal Conference, Reykjavik, Iceland, 2003) Bahati, Godfrey; Natukunda, James Francis; Tuhumwire, Joshua
Exploration for geothermal energy in Uganda has been in progress since 1993. The studies have focused on three major geothermal areas namely Katwe, Buranga and Kibiro.The three areas are in advanced stages of surface exploration and will soon be subjected to exploratory drilling that will pave the way for a feasibility study. The overall objective of the study is to develop geothermal energy to complement hydro and other sources of power to meet the energy demand of rural areas in sound environment. The current study has focused on geology, geochemistry, hydrology and geophysics with the aim of elucidating subsurface temperatures and the spatial extent of the geothermal systems. The results indicate that the geothermal activity in the three areas is related to the volcanic and tectonic activities of the Rift Valley, which has a higher heat flow than the surrounding Precambrian crust. Subsurface temperatures of approximately 140-200˚C for Katwe, 120- 150˚C for Buranga, and 200-220˚C for Kibiro have been predicted by geothermometry and mixing models. Anomalous areas have been delineated in Katwe and Kibiro prospects using geophysical methods. Drilling of shallow boreholes to a depth of 200-300m for temperature gradient measurement has been completed and the temperatures measured (30-36˚C/km) are slightly above the global average of 30˚C/km, which suggests deep reservoirs in Katwe and Kibiro or geothermal reservoirs offset from the drilled areas. Additional geophysical measurements to locate the deep reservoirs and drill sites in the two areas are recommended. The results will then be used to update the geothermal models that will be a basis for the drilling of deep geothermal wells. The Buranga area still needs detailed geophysical surveys to delineate anomalous areas that could be targets for drilling. The results of the preliminary geothermal investigations on other areas predict subsurface temperatures of 100 - 160˚C suitable for small scale electricity production and direct uses. These areas have been ranked based on predicted subsurface temperatures and other geothermal features for further exploration and development.
Conservation of Genetic Resources of Non-Timber Forest Products in Ethiopia
(National Workshop on Non-Timber Forest Products, 2004) Tadesse, Wubalem; Mbogga, Michael
During the last 10–20 years, human interest in non-timber forest products (NTFPs) that appeared relevant to the growing focus on rural development and conservation of natural resources has grown (Arnold and Perez, 2001). Indeed, NTFPs seemed to offer hope that their presence in the forest would act as an incentive to conserve the forest (Lawrence, 2003), at the same time contributing to community development. This was based on the perception that these products are more accessible to rural populations and especially to the rural poor (Saxena, 1995), and that their exploitation is more benign than timber harvesting (Myers, 1988). Moreover, there is an assumption, often implicit, that making forests more valuable to local users can encourage forest conservation (Plotkin and Famolare, 1992; Evans 1993). It is now widely accepted that this has not been the case in many situations, calling for a redress in our approach to NTFPs conservation and use. Despite the fact that NTFPs contribute to tropical forest conservation and poverty alleviation was regarded as very promising, recent studies have cleared, however, that the alleged commercialization-conservation/development link in the NTFPs debate needs reconsideration (Ros-Tonen and Wiersum, 2004). The exploitation of forest resources has a differentiated effect, depending on the type of species and the parts being harvested (Arnold and Perez, 2001). The effect of uncontrolled exploitation of NTFPs from natural population can also have adverse effects not only on the species exploited but also on other associated species. This is why approaches to conservation of NTFPs source species that are sources of non–timber forest products need to be tailored to individual species and areas. Although some NTFPs play a role in rural livelihood strategies and can contribute to sustain forested landscapes in various tropical forest areas, there is no uniform picture as regards the actual importance of NTFPs to rural livelihoods (Ros-Tonen and Wiersum, 2004).
Factors Influencing Equitable Distribution of Water Supply and Sanitation Services in Uganda
(WaterAid., 2005) Asingwire, Narathius; Muhangi, Dennis; Odolon, John
Inequitable distribution of water and sanitation services has received national recognition and equity has been adopted as a key theme that should be monitored and measured every year as part of the sector’s performance review. The study revealed that existing policy prescriptions, strategies and guidelines are largely inclusive of equity provisions. The problem is more of policy translations and application at the district and lower levels. The study concluded that, whereas other factor such as natural occurrence of water, hydro-geological factors and availability of funds combine to dictate the choice of technology for water service delivery, political influence seems to be decisive in actual allocation of water points to be constructed especially where there is no accurate information and uncertainty about the technical criteria to use.
Technologies and Conditions for Participation and Empowerment of Rural Communities in Restoring Degraded Sites in Mabira Forest Reserve, Central Uganda
(World Agroforestry Congress, 2009) Eilu, G.; Galabuzi, C.; Mulugo, L.; Kakudidi, E.; Tabuti, J.R.S.; Sibelet, N.
Forests and related tree based resources contribute to > 90% of the livelihoods of neibouring communities (FAO 1981) These resources are often degraded because the user local people are not empowered to rehabilitate them. The technologies to employ and conditions for local participation are often not clear. This study was conducted to i) identify the technologies that can be locally promoted to restore degraded forest sites; and ii) determine the conditions for empowering the local people to participate in forest restoration.
Human-Wildlife Conflict and Its Implication for Conservation around Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
(Rocky Mountain Research Station, 2011) Aharikundira, Margaret; Tweheyo, Mnason
This study analyzed the impact of wildlife on farmers who lived around the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park (BINP). The objectives were to assess the extent of damage exerted upon local farmers and to establish problem animal control strategies employed for park management and community members. Respondents identified crop loss as the major form of damage (40%), followed by social disruption (35%), damage to property (30%) and threats to human life (20%). The majority of the farmers (63%) reported that the park did not employ any measures to protect people's crops. Very small percentages recognized that the park management employed fencing, vermin guards, and HUGO, as preventive measures to guard against raiding of the peoples’ crops. The study concludes that maize, sweet potatoes, and sorghum were the most frequently raided crops. This report recommends integrated management for conservation activities around the park, and integration of local communities into planning, management, and decision making of the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.
Control of water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) in Rwanda: a survey of local residents’ perceptions
(Nineteenth Australasian Weeds Conference, 2014) Seburanga, Jean L.; Kaplin, Beth A.; Bizuru; Mwavu, Edward N.; Gatesire, Theodette
Community support and participation is an important factor to achieving successful results in weed management. This study sought to gain an insight into local residents’ perceptions of control of water hyacinth using a face-to-face survey. The results showed that biological control was poorly understood by local residents and was perceived as ineffective by those who did have some understanding. Mechanical removal was clearly perceived to be the most efficient method among those used to control water hyacinth in both Mukungwa floodplain and Bulera Lake basin, though the effect was only short-lived. It is recommended that, in the absence of sustained foreign support, biological control of water hyacinth be reviewed in Rwanda and, perhaps, other least developed countries because in these areas there is lack of sufficient funds for a consistent application and the approach is currently poorly understood by the local population in Rwanda.
The Use of MODIS Time Series Data To Map Chl_a and CDOM Variability in Lake Victoria
(2014) Banura, Constance; Gidudu, Anthony; Kabiswa, Edrisa
Chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) and Colored Dissolved Organic Matter (CDOM) are key parameters in the assessment of water quality. Traditionally, these parameters are collected by carrying out in-situ measurements or taking of water samples for testing in the laboratory. This is time consuming, costly, cumbersome and irregularly carried out, but more importantly, does not give a synoptic perspective of the water quality variation on the lake. This becomes especially challenging when dealing with a lake the size of Lake Victoria. This paper therefore explores the use of archived MODIS satellite imagery to study the distribution of Chl_a and CDOM on Lake Victoria. Standard Ocean Color Algorithms were used to extract Chl-_a and CDOM concentrations from MODIS imagery. Annual concentrations were then averaged to get an appreciation of the spatial variability of these parameters for the years 2003 - 2010. The Chl_a imagery was further reclassified according to Calrton’s index to determine the trophic level boundaries. The results show that in general Lake Victoria exhibits high concentrations of Chl_a implying that it is largely eutrophic. The Chl_a and CDOM results around the shores are particularly high and may be attributed to increased surface run off from the lake’s catchment area. These are perspectives of water quality that are only possible with the use of satellite imagery. Given the advantages of high temporal resolution of MODIS imagery and the complete coverage of the lake, it is recommended that relevant stakeholders harness this technology to better improve on the management of their mandates.
Building community based adaptation and resilience to climate change in Uganda
(World Vision, 2014) Gwali, Samson
Climate change and its impacts are already being felt in Uganda in the form of erratic rains, drought, famine, floods and landslides. These hazards do not only affect the crop life cycle but also the entire value chain from pre-production to post-harvest storage, marketing and transport. This ultimately leads to serious socioeconomic consequences in food security, health, and economic development. The reality of climate change is no longer in doubt and therefore, it is important to prepare and adapt to its impacts through appropriate adaptation and resilience strategies. However, resource – poor communities, households and individuals with least resources have the least capacity to adapt to the impacts. Since the linkages between climate change and land degradation are very high, there is a real need to devise community adaptation and resilience strategies that include sustainable land management. These adaptation and resilience strategies include a range of re-greening interventions, such as farmer managed natural regeneration and its variants such as “Ngitili” and community exclosures as well as conservation agricultural practices like “bocage” and “Zai” in West Africa. This paper presents a set of adaptation and resilience interventions implemented by the National Forestry Resources Research Institute (NaFORRI) in various parts of Uganda. These range from agroforestry, avoided deforestation to alternative livelihoods. It is, however, recommended that, in designing and implementing these community adaptation and resilience interventions, great care and consideration should be taken of the gender relations, wealth, power relations, culture and traditions existing in the local communities.
Cloudy with a Chance of Poaching: Adversary Behavior Modeling and Forecasting with Real- World Poaching Data
(International Conference on Autonomous Agents and Multiagent Systems, 2017) Kar, Debarun; Ford, Benjamin; Gholami, Shahrzad; Fang, Fei; Plumptre, Andrew; Tambe, Milind; Driciru, Margaret; Wanyama, Fred; Rwetsiba, Aggrey; Nsubaga, Mustapha; Mabonga, Joshua
Wildlife conservation organizations task rangers to deter and capture wildlife poachers. Since rangers are responsible for patrolling vast areas, adversary behavior modeling can help more effectively direct future patrols. In this innovative application track paper, we present an adversary behavior modeling system, INTERCEPT (INTERpretable Classification Ensemble to Protect Threatened species), and provide the most extensive evaluation in the AI literature of one of the largest poaching datasets from Queen Elizabeth National Park (QENP) in Uganda, comparing INTERCEPT with its competitors; we also present results from a month-long test of INTERCEPT in the field. We present three major contributions. First, we present a paradigm shift in modeling and forecasting wildlife poacher behavior. Some of the latest work in the AI literature (and in Conservation) has relied on models similar to the Quantal Response model from Behavioral Game Theory for poacher behavior prediction. In contrast, INTERCEPT presents a behavior model based on an ensemble of decision trees (i) that more effectively predicts poacher attacks and (ii) that is more effectively interpretable and verifiable. We augment this model to account for spatial correlations and construct an ensemble of the best models, significantly improving performance. Second, we conduct an extensive evaluation on the QENP dataset, comparing 41 models in prediction performance over two years. Third, we present the results of deploying INTERCEPT for a one-month field test in QENP - a first for adversary behavior modeling applications in this domain. This field test has led to finding a poached elephant and more than a dozen snares (including a roll of elephant snares) before they were deployed, potentially saving the lives of multiple animals - including elephants.
Adversary models account for imperfect crime data: Forecasting and planning against real-world poachers
(International Conference on Autonomous Agents and Multiagent Systems, 2018) Gholami, Shahrzad; Mc Carthy, Sara; Dilkina, Bistra; Plumptre, Andrew; Tambe, Milind; Driciru, Margaret; Wanyama, Fred; Rwetsiba, Aggrey; Nsubaga, Mustapha; Mabonga, Joshua; Okello, Tom; Enyel, Eric
Poachers are engaged in extinction level wholesale slaughter, so it is critical to harness historical data for predicting poachers’ behavior. However, in these domains, data collected about adversarial actions are remarkably imperfect, where reported negative instances of crime may be mislabeled or uncertain. Unfortunately, past attempts to develop predictive and prescriptive models to address this problem suffer from shortcomings from a modeling perspective as well as in the implementability of their techniques. Most notably these models i) neglect the uncertainty in crime data, leading to inaccurate and biased predictions of adversary behavior, ii) use coarse-grained crime analysis and iii) do not provide a convincing evaluation as they only look at a single protected area. Additionally, they iv) proposed time-consuming techniques which cannot be directly integrated into low resource outposts. In this innovative application paper, we (I) introduce iWare-E a novel imperfect-observation aWare Ensemble (iWare-E) technique, which is designed to handle the uncertainty in crime information efficiently. This approach leads to superior accuracy and efficiency for adversary behavior prediction compared to the previous stateof- the-art. We also demonstrate the country-wide efficiency of the models and are the first to (II) evaluate our adversary behavioral model across different protected areas in Uganda, i.e., Murchison Fall and Queen Elizabeth National Park, (totaling about 7500 km2) as well as (III) on fine-grained temporal resolutions. Lastly, (IV) we provide a scalable planning algorithm to design fine-grained patrol routes for the rangers, which achieves up to 150% improvement in number of predicted attacks detected.
Evaluation of Predictive Models forWildlife Poaching Activity through Controlled Field Test in Uganda
(AAAI Conference on Artificial Intelligence, 2018) Gholami, Shahrzad; Ford, Benjamin; Kar, Debarun; Fang, Fei; Tambe, Milind; Plumptre, Andrew; Driciru, Margaret; Wanyama, Fred; Rwetsiba, Aggrey; Nsubaga, Mustapha; Mabonga, Joshua
Worldwide, conservation agencies employ rangers to protect conservation areas from poachers. However, agencies lack the manpower to have rangers effectively patrol these vast areas frequently. While past work modeled poachers behavior so as to aid rangers in planning future patrols, those models predictions were not validated by extensive field tests.We conducted two rounds of field tests in Ugandas Queen Elizabeth Protected Area to evaluate our proposed spatio-temporal model that predicts poaching threat levels. In the first round, a one-month field test was conducted to test the predictive power of the model and in the second round an eight-month test was conducted to evaluate the selectiveness power of the model. To our knowledge, this is the first time that a predictive model is evaluated through such an extensive field test in this domain. These field tests will be extended to another park in Uganda, Murchison Fall Protected Area. Once such models are evaluated in the field, they can be used to generate efficient and feasible patrol routes for the park rangers.
Market Opportunities for the Direct Use of Low Temperature Geothermal Heat in Uganda
(Institute of Water and Energy Sciences, Pan African University, 2018) Natukunda, Faith; Valdimarsson, Pall
As a country, Uganda has a growing interest to diversify its energy mix from dependency on hydro power and traditional biomass. Prospects for the exploitation of the existing geothermal potential are therefore not only in power generation, but also direct use applications, although geothermal development is still in the preliminary stages. This study places emphasis on the range of opportunities for direct use of low temperature geothermal heat in Uganda. Because the transportation of heat over long distances is uneconomical; it is advisable to utilize the heat within a given radius of its source. In this study, the areas within such radii where geothermal activity is witnessed were assessed based on; fluid temperature, climate, population as well as main economic activities to better understand the market opportunities for the heat that will be extracted. Some of the more outstanding geothermal fields were studied; from which it was observed that out of the diversity of sectors for investment, agriculture-based industries; agricultural drying and milk pasteurization, pose higher opportunities for success given the available sources of raw materials. It would however be important to carry out a detailed industry specific market analysis at the feasibility phase for a better understanding of the development of the selected industries for implementation.
Stay Ahead of Poachers: Illegal Wildlife Poaching Prediction and Patrol Planning Under Uncertainty with Field Test Evaluations
(IEEE, 2019) Xu, Lily; Gholami, Shahrzad; Mc Carthy, Sara; Dilkina, Bistra; Plumptre, Andrew; Tambe, Milind; Singh, Rohit; Nsubuga, Mustapha; Mabonga, Joshua; Driciru, Margaret; Wanyama, Fred; Rwetsiba, Aggrey; Okello, Tom; Enyel, Eric
Illegal wildlife poaching threatens ecosystems and drives endangered species toward extinction. However, efforts for wildlife protection are constrained by the limited resources of law enforcement agencies. To help combat poaching, the Protection Assistant for Wildlife Security (PAWS) is a machine learning pipeline that has been developed as a data-driven approach to identify areas at high risk of poaching throughout protected areas and compute optimal patrol routes. In this paper, we take an end-to-end approach to the data-to-deployment pipeline for anti-poaching. In doing so, we address challenges including extreme class imbalance (up to 1:200), bias, and uncertainty in wildlife poaching data to enhance PAWS, and we apply our methodology to three national parks with diverse characteristics. (i) We use Gaussian processes to quantify predictive uncertainty, which we exploit to improve robustness of our prescribed patrols and increase detection of snares by an average of 30%. We evaluate our approach on real-world historical poaching data from Murchison Falls and Queen Elizabeth National Parks in Uganda and, for the first time, Srepok Wildlife Sanctuary in Cambodia. (ii) We present the results of large-scale field tests conducted in Murchison Falls and Srepok Wildlife Sanctuary which confirm that the predictive power of PAWS extends promisingly to multiple parks. This paper is part of an effort to expand PAWS to 800 parks around the world through integration with SMART conservation software.
Designing and delivering bioinformatics project-based learning in East Africa
(BioMed Central Ltd, 2024-04) Kibet, Caleb K; Entfellner, Jean-Baka Domelevo; Jjingo, Daudi; de Villiers, Etienne Pierre; de Villiers, Santie; Wambui, Karen; Kinyanjui, Sam; Masiga, Daniel
The Eastern Africa Network for Bioinformatics Training (EANBiT) has matured through continuous evaluation, feedback, and codesign. We highlight how the program has evolved to meet challenges and achieve its goals and how experiential learning through mini projects enhances the acquisition of skills and collaboration. We continued to learn and grow through honest feedback and evaluation of the program, trainers, and modules, enabling us to provide robust training even during the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, when we had to redesign the program due to restricted travel and in person group meetings. In response to the pandemic, we developed a program to maintain "residential" training experiences and benefits remotely. We had to answer the following questions: What must change to still achieve the RT goals? What optimal platforms should be used? How would we manage connectivity and data challenges? How could we avoid online fatigue? Going virtual presented an opportunity to reflect on the essence and uniqueness of the program and its ability to meet the objective of strengthening bioinformatics skills among the cohorts of students using different delivery approaches. It allowed an increase in the number of participants. Evaluating each program component is critical for improvement, primarily when feedback feeds into the program's continuous amendment. Initially, the participants noted that there were too many modules, insufficient time, and a lack of hands-on training as a result of too much focus on theory. In the subsequent iterations, we reduced the number of modules from 27 to five, created a harmonized repository for the materials on GitHub, and introduced project-based learning through the mini projects. We demonstrate that implementing a program design through detailed monitoring and evaluation leads to success, especially when participants who are the best fit for the program are selected on an appropriate level of skills, motivation, and commitment.

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