| dc.description.abstract | This study examined effects of sport hunting on the livelihoods of gateway communities: the study was about operational arrangements at the intersection of conservation, people’s livelihood and tourism (sport hunting). More specifically, it discusses the positive and negative effects of sport hunting on the livelihood of local communities around the game reserve.
It was carried out in case study Katonga wild life reserve in the villages of Magando and Kabagole in Biguli Sub County, Kamwengye district, South Western Uganda. The overall objective of the study was to investigate the benefits and challenges of sport hunting to the livelihood of the local communities living adjacent to Katonga Game reserve. The objectives of the study were to assess the benefits of sport hunting accruing to the communities and the challenges faced, to examine sport hunting activities practiced in the game reserve and identification of the strategies used to implement sport hunting in and around the game reserve.
Data were collected using the interview method. The method was employed in this study and involved direct verbal discussions and interactions with selected respondents from Magondo and Kabagole villages in order to obtain relevant data. They were mainly be used to bring preliminary issues to the surface so as to determine the variables needed for further investigation especially data obtained using other tools such as questionnaires. Data were analysed using SSPS and word excel to generate descriptive statistics such as percentages, and frequencies.
According to the study, sports hunting has increased incomes among the people in the area, it was further found out that sport hunting in Katonga region has generated huge amounts of tax revenue and could support Community Conservation, but at the same time it has imposed restrictions on the livelihoods of local people and has forced migration.
Moreover, the study recognized that Uganda wildlife authority has got a policy whereby only registered members are the ones that participate in sport hunting and any other party that participates in sport hunting while not registered is breaking the law and is doing it illegally.
It is concluded that the stakeholders I n the sport hunting business have participated in the setting of revenue sharing percentages through which the local communities receive the revenues accruing from sport hunting. The local communities in the two villages have also been able to earn jobs through this project in schools and tourist facilities. Others are employed as rangers, security guards and guides while a large number are involved in various projects started by the park and its partners to help improve household income. To a large extent, this revenue has improved community livelihoods as they get to spread risks from wildlife damages to other Projects that are not easily destroyed by wild animals.
However the sport hunting project is not marred with several challenges including corruption, the local communities also complained about crop raiding as well as the lack of a clear blueprint for the project.
It is therefore recommended that a national sport hunting policy Influencing local people to become good partners and not enemies of conservation whereby the state, policy and legislation makers should consider a fair and proper allocation of resources supplemented with short and long-term interventions, Enhancing communication between local people, WMA management and tourism hunting companies. The management of Uganda wild life Authority should enhance its communication especially on the collection, use and sharing of revenues. This can be done by channeling the information through the village natural resource conservation committees, call for village meetings and disseminate the information, making available the revenue collection and use reports. It is in these ways that local people will develop faith and participate in conservation activities, as they will feel involved and responsible | en_US |
