UWA Digs Trenches to Stop Elephants
Cornes Lubangakene
19 September 2010


Kampala — The Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) and CARE International, a humanitarian agency, are to dig trenches along the Murchison Falls National Park boundaries to prevent elephants from crossing over to Koch Goma sub-county in Nwoya district.

This was revealed during a recent stakeholders' meeting district at Sunset Hotel in Gulu district. A UWA official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the institution had allocated sh100m to finance the project.

"We have allocated sh587m from last year's revenue sharing to the districts surrounding the park. We also allocated sh100m to dig the trenches in Koch Goma. We hope that this will provide a temporalry solution to the problem," the official said.

CARE International also contributed sh60m towards the project. The director of quality learning, Richard Businge, said the pilot project, scheduled to begin on October 1, would be implemented by the Voluntary Initiative Support Organisation and African Pact.

He said committees to oversee the digging had been identified in each parish and would be trained before work begins. The district chairman, Patrick Okello Oryema, said the sh100m from UWA would be channelled through CARE since they are implementing the project.

"Since CARE is already on the ground, we feel that it is not good to have two bodies implementing the same project," Oryema said. He said Koch Goma was chosen for the pilot project because it is the most affected area.

The district leaders said as a temporary solution is being implemented, a more permanent solution of erecting electrified fences along the boundary be sought.

The monitor of the return of internally displaced people in the north, Lt. Col. Francis Achoka, said elephants would continue crossing over to people's gardens because their passage from Murchison Falls to Zoka Forest in Southern Sudan had been blocked.

Achoka said agriculturalists, who have acquired land along the corridors, have not left space for the animals.

"Farmers did not mind about the safe passage for the animals, hence forcing them to look for alternative passages and, therefore, destroying peoples' property."

Koch Goma chairman John Bosco Okullu said the animals had killed one person, injured nine and destroyed several properties and gardens.

That is an important migratory route. And a seemingly poor way to stop them. I wish that UWA would look to ways to give the ele safe passge.