Three districts of Mbarara, Rwampara and Buhweju are still seeking solutions of how to restore catchment areas in the locations where River Rwizi originates from.
Rwizi is the main source of water for Mbarara city and the surrounding areas. Rwizi, which originates from the hills of Kamukaki, Kalungu sub-county in Buhweju district, with various tributaries from the swamps of Rwampara.
The 8,200km river that discharges its water into Lake Victoria, serves about five million people from Greater Ankore, Rakai and Kyotera districts.
Various individual groups, National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) and the water and environment ministry have come up with campaigns such as Save River Rwizi,’ but this has not yielded much as far as restoring swamps that supply water to the river in the upland is concerned.
Early this year, Abahumuza Development Group based in Mbarara rolled out another campaign and removed tonnes of plastic bottles that were floating on sections of the river in Buremba One Cell in Mbarara city.
Water hyacinth, which had blocked the water channel at Taso Village Bridge was also scooped out to allow a smooth flow of water into the river.
Nonetheless, efforts to protect Rwizi from extinction have been minimal due to uncontrolled human activities, ranging from direct sand mining from the river, discharge of plastic waste into the river, encroachment on wetlands and agricultural practices in the buffer zone.
Jeconius Musingwire, the Western Uganda NEMA regional manager, told Sunday Vision that out of the 50% of the degraded wetlands in the catchment area, they have not even reached 5% restoration of the degraded and encroached wetlands in the river’s catchment area.
Musingwire said in the catchment area, they have not had a big percentage recovery of the wetlands due to a shortage of funds.
“Since we have to develop aconcept note for every wetland that we embark on, the most challenging factor is limited funding. We have been helped by private partnerships such as Agency for Co-operation and Research in Development (ACORD),” Musingwire said.
He said there is a need for privatepublic partnership on the restoration of wetlands in the catchment area. Musingwire further noted that in Bujjaga, Rwampara district through partnering up with ACORD, they have managed to restore eight square kilometres of degraded wetlands.
“Restoring the catchment areas of River Rwizi is still a big challenge, but can be achieved if communities in those areas, especially swamps are brought on board and form conservation teams. When well facilitated, they can play a watchdog role on behalf of the Government,” Musingwire said.
Restored swamps
Musingwire noted that so far, they have managed to restore Nyakambu swamp in Buhweju district, which had been turned into farmlands, Ihoho, Kongoro, Kakoma and Kabutaare swamp in Ndeija sub-county, Rwampara district.
He noted that they have managed to put stone bunds, gabions and water retention ditches in the hills of Kamukaki village in Buhweju district to retain water volumes within the soil upland, mid and down slopes rather than leaving it to run off.
“If you tap the water surface, you will recharge river lands and increase water in granaries of wetlands. We are looking at a bigger approach of saving River Rwizi from extinction,” Musingwire said.
He added: “For example in Nyakambu swamp in Sheema, over 118 acres had been encroached and it was mainly farms and gardens in 2016 that residents had started tilling for crop production and they had dug drainage channels to completely kill the swamp but when after embarking on the restoration campaign, the swamp is back and residents are appreciating it.”
Maj. (Rtd) John Bosco Bamuturaki, the chairperson of River Rwizi Catchment Conservation Committee, said restoration of Rwizi is everybody’s responsibility rather than leaving it to the leaders.
Bamuturaki noted that after putting measures to secure the upstream catchment areas where the river originates, the water body is now threatened by plastic and garbage waste dumping along the Mbarara city stretch.
“What is happening on the Mbarara city stretch is purely contamination brought about by human activities because people intentionally dump garbage and other waste in the river. We are grappling with the vice, but we want to tell stakeholders that since we have tried to secure the sources in Buhweju, let us focus here in Mbarara city,” Bamuturaki said.
He is worried that if there are no collective efforts towards saving the river: “We shall have no water in Mbarara city because the river will continue to suffer from extinction and National Water and Sewerage Corporation will continue to run short of water for supply”.
John Najjuna, the programme manager of ARCOD Uganda, said the organisation has been running a twoyear intervention project of restoring wetlands in Ndeija sub-county, Rwampara, said they put stone bunds and gabions that bar people from encroaching on wetlands.
Najjuna said this during a stakeholders’ meeting last week while closing a two-year project and assessing how the interventions in Rwampara can be sustained by local governments.
Najjuna said they mobilised communities, especially those that had turned wetlands into farmlands to vacate, gave them start-up capital of shs108m to venture in other activities that shall not have any effect on the wetlands.
“To have these catchment areas restored, the communities should embrace the initiative rather than us having running battles with them. ARCOD came in to supplement the efforts of Rwampara district by mobilising communities in Ndeija and they helped us to locate those wetlands that had been degraded,” Najjuna said.
She added that to convince residents, they set up water harvesting systems to bar them from moving to swamps to fetch water.
They also trained residents in backyard gardening, beekeeping and hot culture.
What others say
Richard Owomugasho, Rwampara LC5 chairperson: This is the time leaders need to come out and speak about River Rwizi because much of the problem stems from town, where people dispose of plastic waste into the river.
Some political leaders are afraid of speaking out for fear of falling out with voters.
As leaders in Rwampara, they will not keep a blind eye to the destruction of wetlands.
John Namanya, Ndeija sub-county chairperson: Encroachment is still a challenge on the Nyihanga-Buteraniro swamps and Kibaale, which need much attention.
Otherwise, the situation in Ndeija had become serious.
When ACORD engaged the community on the importance of restoring wetlands, residents easily picked and there was no pulling of strings.
