“Am making 2 million tree seedlings this year to restore Terego’s green cover,” retorted a Woman Member of Parliament for Terego district Hon. Rose Obigah during a one-on-one conversation as she told the story on how refugees are contributing to environmental degradation in her region.
Located in the West Nile region of Northern Uganda, Terego is one of the Thirteen districts that house refuges. The district covers an area of 1,102 square kilometers (425 sq mi). The areas now making up the district recorded a non-refugee population of 199,303 in 2014.
Alongside a refuge population of about 168,000 people that mostly come from South Sudan, and get settled into the Imvepi Refugee Settlement plus the western zones of the Rhino Camp Refugee Settlement. The Rhino camp refuge settlement is among the top three most populated refugee camps, with Bidibidi and Pagirinya in the lead.
Refugees from South Sudan accounts for 62% of refugees in Uganda, while the Democratic Republic of the Congo accounts for 29%.
Hon. Obigah said, what used to be a green Terego is nearly becoming a desert because of the trees, and shrubs that are getting cleared every time refugees storm the district.
“We used to have a very green environment. We now have refugees,” Obigah expressed. She was quick to add; “We love the refugees and don’t regret their presence, but the environment has gone to the dogs.”
She explained that refugees cut trees to create space for settlement, for firewood which is the major source of energy, in addition to burning and selling of charcoal for survival.
Interventions
Obigah however says, there are ongoing interventions by some non-government organizations supporting refugee camps in restoring the green cover, but this she suggests, should also be done for the host communities since climate change effects know no boundaries.
Another case is of Kasese district with both internally displaced people due to natural hazards, especially floods and refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo whose population is about 500.
Johnson Thembo Puruka, a Conservation Educator at Uganda Wildlife Conservation Education Centre (UWEC) – Entebbe zoo, who also hails from Kasese said, much as Uganda is hospitable and the leading refugee host country in Africa with about 1.5 million refugees, little emphasis is being put on environmental management strategies within the refugee camps.
Thembo’s proposes an increase in sensitization on issues of proper environment management and spreading out the National environmental rules and guidance within the refugee camps, so as to make knownvthe environmental dos and don’ts of the communities that host refugees.
“Our communities within Kasese district have different traditional ways of sustainably using the natural surrounding for survival. In most cases when refugees come, because of lack of ownership, they will unsustainably use the natural resources to quench their thirst, which makes the environment vulnerable,” explained Thembo.
Bob Mayonza is the country director of Pilgrim Centre for Reconciliation, a Non-Government Organisation that takes care of refugees said, there’s a need for all stakeholders to sit on a round table and plan effectively for the refugee settlements.
“Minus proper planning, amidst continued influx of refugees, the country’s environment shall continue to be compromised,” Mayonza noted.
Refugee Status in Uganda
Uganda’s 2006 Refugee Act has severally been recognized as being exemplary in the world because it maintains open borders and promotes self-reliance of refugees and peaceful co-existence with host communities.
However, the living conditions within the refugee settlements are often characterised by limited resources resulting into heavy reliance on the environment. In addition, water pollution and human waste disposal by displaced persons contaminate local groundwater and cause the spread of diseases.
Between 2014 and 2018, the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations, reported that 14% of woody biomass had been lost within 5 km radius of the refugee settlement boundaries, with additional loss and degradation in an extended 15km buffer.
At a national scale, Uganda’s forest cover decreased from 24% in 1994 to 9% in 2019. Over 93% of refugee and host community households are reliant on wood for cooking fuel, leading to calls for innovations on sustainable biomass production and efficient utilization.
State of Climate Finance in Uganda
Patricia Roy Akullo from the Climate Finance Unit, a newly installed unit under the Ministry of Finance Planning and Economic Development says, Uganda, just like any other developing member country signatory to the United Nations, had great hope in the US$100bn pledge.
The pledge was made by the developing countries during the Paris agreement of 2015 towards combating effects of climate change. However, to date, developing countries failed to meet this goal which is due to expire next year 2024.
According to Akullo, Uganda, through the National Determinant Contribution under the Ministry of Water and Environment has put in place a National Climate Plan whose total budget for Climate Action is $US28.1bn.
Out of which, US$4.1bn (15%), is to be raised from the domestic sources while the US$24bn (85%), will be got from external funding. Part of the external funding will come from awaited new goal of the 1 trillion US dollars that is being discussed by countries of the COP28 this year in Dubai, which is being thought of, to replace the US$100bn pledge.
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