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Uganda's natural areas make it one of the richest countries in Africa, but it is also one the the poorest economically. Most people in Uganda make less than $250 a year and depend on what they can grow on small farms to make a living. The human population is gowing rapidly, and more and more forest and savannah is being converted to farmland and pasture. One of the best hopes for saving habitat in Uganda, and all over Africa is to find new ways for people to make a living that does not deplete the resources that makes it the natural wonder it is.
The basis of the Zoo's conservation program in Uganda has been the Uganda Community Tourism Association (UCOTA) which was formed in July 1998, and marked a milestone in the Zoo’s field conservation program. UCOTA created one of the best hopes for preserving Uganda’s wildlife habitats and natural resources. The North Carolina Zoo's support has succeeded in launching what is quickly becoming a highly effective conservation tool, the direct involvement of local communities in preserving wildlife and habitat in this important biologically diverse region.
In a very short time UCOTA expanded to 39 community group members that cover all parts of the country. A strategic plan for the organization has been written and standards for community-run businesses are being developed. The pace of training workshops has accelerated, and the development of crafts for sale to tourist and for export has expanded and has become an important source of income, especially for women who have few other opportunities for making money in isolated rural communities. Craft sales and ecotourism pay for the construction of schools and medical clinics in the remotest parts of the country. The communities thus see concrete results from maintaining the natural resources that are the base of ecotourism.
UCOTA has also gained the recognition of the Ugandan government and has become a partner with the Uganda Tourist Board (UTB), the government ministry that oversees tourism for the country. The UTB has given UCOTA a grant of $150,000 to develop advertising materials and present community tourism. UCOTA has also partnered with the Association for Community Tourism (ACT) in the U.K and the Dutch international aid agency to develop community-based ecotourism. The United States Agency for International Development has contributed over $80,000 to continue training workshops and has invited a proposal for a large grant to support UCOTA for the next couple of years.
What began as a program to help a few communities develop environmentally sound ecotourism business has grown to a national network of communities and touches all the national parks and critical conservation areas of Uganda. This seed money has been more than matched by other organizations that have recognized UCOTA’s importance and NC Zoo Society support has laid the foundation for protecting some of the world’s richest and most unique wildlife and ecosystems.
British Airways has been an especially helpful partner, providing travel for Ugandan and N.C. Zoo staff that has been instrumental in developing the Uganda program. Working in a country half way across the world is a challenge, and travel can be a major expense. Transport provided by British Airways has allowed the Zoo to concentrate its limited funds on the ground in Uganda, supporting UCOTA, local communities and wildlife projects directly.
The Zoo's General Curator, Ron Morris, and the Conservation Coordinator, Randy Fulk, traveled to Uganda to review the status of UCOTA with the Ugandan Government Ministries, the Wildlife and Forest Departments, and major aid agencies that fund conservation in Uganda. The trip helped insure the continued development of UCOTA towards self-sufficiency and laid the groundwork for several exciting projects that will broaden the Zoo's program in Uganda.
Sitting at the boundary of East and West Africa, Uganda is one of the best places to see a wide variety of bird species. It is also an important overwintering site for migrant species from Europe. One of the Zoo's new conservation programs is support for migratory bird counts, an ongoing database for avian species in Uganda, bird guide training and development of birding as a tourist attraction in several of the protected areas and surrounding communities. Working with British and Ugandan researchers, several species that have never been recorded in Uganda before have already been found.
One of the most exciting new projects is an evaluation of chimpanzee ecotourism sites in National Parks and Forest Reserves. Uganda has been famous as one of the only places in the world to see mountain gorillas in the wild. It is less well known as a place to see wild chimpanzees, but Uganda offers the best opportunities for chimpanzee viewing in Africa. Chimpanzees are found in all of Uganda's major forests and groups are being habituated for tourist viewing at 10 sites. Julia Lloyd, our partner with the Jane Goodall Institute is heading the habituation efforts. The evaluation of ecotourism sites will bring together Park and Forestry staff as well as people from the communities surrounding these protected areas and will be the basis for future ecotourism development and conservation education programs.
Chimpanzees in Kibale and Budongo Forests are often victims of wire snares set by poachers trying to catch antelope or bushpig. While they are rarely fatal, the snares cause serious injuries to the chimpanzees and many have lost fingers, toes or whole hands or feet from being caught in the snares. For several years, the Park Rangers have been conducting a Snare Removal Project, regularly patrolling the forests and picking up snares set on forest trails. The Zoo will be helping fund and equip these anti-snare patrols. The project also supports on-going data collection on chimpanzees and other primates and helps the Park monitor the forest's elephant, duiker and bushpig populations.
The Snare Removal Project is a conservation education program being developed by Park Rangers and Ugandan researchers that will target the local communities around the forests. One goal of the education program is help local people understand the importance of not hunting in the Park and to help stop snares from being set in the first place. Conservation education and ecotourism development can go a long way to gaining the support of local people for the Parks and Forest Reserves that are critical habitat for Uganda's wildlife.
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