Authors : A.C. Otieno, M. Buyinza, R.A. Kapiyo and B.O. Oindo
Abstract: The central forest reserves in Uganda are open access loosely guarded by ostensibly ill-enforced Uganda Forestry Policy 2001. Conflict of interest amongst the stakeholders led to their devegatation by the local communities engulfing them exemplified by their immense encroachments in the country. A study of 225 house holds in the proximity of West Bugwe Central Forest Reserve (WBCFR), Busia district revealed that fuel wood collection and extraction of construction materials had gone beyond the legally accepted reasonable quantities hence instrumental to deforestation there was a high/strong relationship at r = 0.66 at a 0.05 level of significance between the Bulumbi sub-county local communities and the Busitema sub-county local communities’ perception on illegalities leading to deforestation of WBCFR, Busia district, charcoal burning as an illegality destined to Busia conurbation as was detrimental to the conservation of WBCFR, Busia district and none of the strategies the NFA officials adopted to curb deforestation viz. strict supervision, imprisoning encroachers, mass sensitization, reforestation and trustworthiness was statistically significant at df = 2 at 0.01 = 9.210. Researchers therefore recommended that there was a need to accommodate the local communities in the management of WBCFR in their proximity through collaborative forest management to avoid administrative conflicts in this area. Through this, NFA should introduce participatory monitoring, evaluation and effective sensitization to avert the ineffectiveness of strict supervision and imprisonment.
A.C. Otieno, M. Buyinza, R.A. Kapiyo and B.O. Oindo, 2013. Encroachments and Deforestation in Uganda: A Case of West Bugwe Central Forest Reserve, Busia District. Research Journal of Applied Sciences, 8: 407-417.