Anthony Egeru

Assessing the spatio-temporal climate variability in semi-arid Karamoja sub-region in north-eastern Uganda

Semi-arid areas show climatic variability on a spatio-temporal scale. There are few studies on the long-term trends and intensity of this variability from East Africa. We used National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration re-analysis climate data (1979–2009) in this study. Rainfall exhibited a non-significant long-term trend. The climate of the area is variable (coefficient of variation-CV >35.0%) with spatio-temporal oddities in rainfall and temperature. A rise in minimum (0.9 °C), maximum (1.6 °C) and mean (1.3 °C) temperature occurred between 1979 and 2009. There were more months with climate variability indices below the threshold (<1.0) from 1979 to 1994 than between 1995 and 2009, with wetness intensity increasingly common after 2000, leading to the observed reduction in the recurrence of multi-year drought events. More extreme wet events (rainfall variability index >2.6) were experienced between 2004 and 2009 than between 1984 and 2003. We consider that the use of spatio-temporal climatic information for timely adjustment to extreme climate variability events is essential in semi-arid areas.

Piospheric influence on forage species composition and abundance in semi-arid Karamoja sub-region, Uganda

Piospheres in semi-arid areas are gradients of animal impacts around watering holes. Few studies have examined the impact dynamics of herbaceous and woody species composition and abundance in relation to piospheres in East Africa. In this study, we identified the trend in piosphere development, assessed piosphere use and change indicators, and identified herbaceous and woody plant structure in relation to piospheres in the Karamoja sub-region, Uganda. Results revealed that piosphere development has been reactionary to drought and/or insecurity events and increased rapidly in the last decade. A diversity of herbaceous and woody plants exists around the piospheres. Use and change indicators revealed high trampling and grazing intensity, high presence of erosion signs and low litter cover. Gradient distance had both positive and negative effects on trampling intensity, percent exposure and plant height, respectively. A negative and positive effect of gradient distance was also observed on different herbaceous and woody forage species leading to the identification of both increaser and decreaser species around the piospheres. Therefore, as concentrated use of the piospheres continues unabated, an outward ripple effect leading to loss and/or increase of undesirable herbaceous and woody species will be felt. This will have an impact on the composition and abundance dynamics of desirable forage species in the sub-region.

ABUNDANCE AND DIVERSITY OF NATIVE FORAGE SPECIES IN PASTORAL KARAMOJA SUB-REGION, UGANDA

Low input pastoral production systems rely exclusively on natural forage resources in space and time. Information on the abundance and diversity of such pastures is vital in improving livestock production and managing the biodiversity of grazing landscapes. This study documented grass and browse forage species utilised in pastoral Karamoja, and determined their relative abundance by district, season and grazing land cover. Up to 65 grass and 110 browse species were utilised in Karamoja Sub-region. In situ assessments revealed that Chloris, Hyparrhennia, Sporobolus, Pennisetum, Aristida, Cynodon, Eragrostis, Setaria, and Panicum grasses had higher relative abundance. Triumfetta annua, Indigofera erecta, Acacia drepanolobium, Grewia holstii, Acacia kirkii, Acacia mellifera, Acacia tortolis, Maerua pseudopetalosa, Acacia oerfota, and Ocimmum canum woody species were the most abundant. From the community assessment, Hyparrhennia, Chloris, Panicum, Bracharia, Eragrostis, and Setaria grasses and Acacia mellifera, Cadaba farinose, Acacia oerfota, Acacia drepanolobium, Caparis tormentosa, Maerua pseudopetalosa and Hisbiscus micrantha woody plants were identified as the most abundant among the grazing land cover. The grass and browse forage species varied by season, location, and land cover type. The study also found detailed local knowledge of grass and browse forage species in the community. This study has shown the existence of high diversity among grass and browse forage species with differentiated relative abundance across space and time. This, and the detailed communal cultural knowledge, form a basis for the improvement of livestock production as well as biodiversity conservation in Karamoja sub-region.

Uganda’s rangeland policy: intentions, consequences and opportunities

This paper analyses Uganda’s rangeland policies and their ecological and socio-economic consequences, beginning in pre-colonial times. The paper interrogates what informed these policies, their objectives and outcomes that have been realized. Policy actions are recommended to correct the deficiencies identified in the analysis. This analysis shows that policies were based on western European resource management, classical rangeland ecological and economic theory and marginalization narratives, rather than the socio-ecological realities of Uganda’s rangelands. The unique attributes of Uganda’s rangelands were largely unrecognized. Consequently, pastoralists, dependent on the rangeland resources and ecosystem services, were displaced and exposed to incremental risks, poverty and a breakdown of social networks and safety nets as well as decline in rangeland productivity. In the rangelands of north-eastern Uganda for example, the inflexibility and immobility and forms of exploitation dictated to the Karimojong pastoralists led to increased soil erosion and decline in land productivity. Similarly, with increased parcelization, individualization and sedentarization in central and south-western Uganda, pastoral communities became impoverished as rangeland resources became increasingly limited. This increased their exposure to the vagaries of extreme events such as droughts, floods and disease outbreaks, thereby increasing livestock mortality and recurrent food insecurity. Expansion of competing land uses has reduced the net availability of rangeland resources, often with the support of external incentives. Current policies promoting fire exclusion have led to increased bush encroachment, while other policies have undermined the centrality of commons’ governance practices and institutions. Uganda’s land use policies ought to emphasize a more balanced socio-ecological perspective (ensuring net gain especially in the interaction of resource use between humans and the environment) that supports the functionality and productivity of rangeland ecosystems and their ability to deliver socio-economically important ecosystem services and address human needs. This can be through promotion of common property and consolidation of land for optimal utilization of ecological heterogeneity and enhancement of resilience. Mapping of transhumance corridors to determine ways through which mobility can increase herds’ access to forage and water between and within years will be equally important to enhance pastoralists’ resilience. Policy actions that provide payments for conservation stewardship of rangelands should be considered to incentivize land owners to maintain their land as rangelands. Assessment is required of the ecological and social impacts of fire, in order to determine optimal fire regimes and amendment of laws that ban the use of fires, so as to promote prescribed burning in rangelands. Achieving all these will require reforms that clearly delineate policy and legal frameworks for sustainable rangeland use and management.

Mapping the Potential for Hay Making in Rangelands: A Methodological Proposition

On the Ground We present information useful to various stakeholders, including land managers, agency personnel, practitioners, and researchers, as it presents methodology for ○ Determining the best period for hay harvest corresponding to peak productivity of the vegetation in rangelands; ○ Estimating the amount of hay available (biomass) at peak productivity, using commonly available satellite imagery; and ○ Highlighting the best areas for hay production based on grassland availability. All of this is done by employing the readily available tools of remote sensing and geographical information system.