The effectiveness of human-wildlife conflict mitigation measures around Murchison Falls national park in Kiryandongo district

Abstract

This report about the effectiveness of human-wildlife conflicts mitigation measures has been successfully made in areas neighboring MFNP in Kibyama and Mpumwe villages of Mpumwe parish in Kiryandongo district. The overall objective of the research was to generate knowledge on the effectiveness of human-wildlife conflicts mitigation measures in Mpumwe parish in Kiryandongo district neighboring MFNP Specific on objectives included; (1) to identify the nature and cause of human-wildlife conflicts, (2) to assess the extent of effectiveness of the measures taken to mitigate human- wildlife conflicts (3) To examine the challenges to mitigating human- wildlife conflicts in Mpumwe parish in Kiryandongo district. The study found out that crop raiding, livestock predation and human attacks by wild animals especially elephants were the major forms/nature of human wildlife conflicts with elephants, monkeys, baboons, buffaloes, warthog and foxes as the problem animals involved in the conflicts in Mpumwe parish. The cause of these conflicts was majorly due to insufficient food for wild animals in the PA as a result of increased population of wild animals, thus competition for food resources, while other causes include water scarcity for wildlife, park encroachment by the local people in the communities adjacent to the park through deforestation for agriculture, settlement, wood fuel or charcoal and the sweet scent of flowering food crops cultivated near the park boundary which attract wild animals. HWC mitigation measures taken to mitigate the conflicts included, guarding, fencing, use of the trench and traditional methods such as use of chili smoke, use of traps, use of poison, setting fire, scarce shouting using vuvuzelas, drums and bangers and using bee hives which were hanged on the trees to chase away wild animals from their crop fields. The above mitigation measures were effective in reducing crop damage. for example, areas where the trench was properly established, residents experienced least cases of the wildlife conflicts that’s to say, once in a season. Despite the efforts to mitigate HWC in Mpumwe parish in Kiryandongo district neighboring MFNP, there were challenges that hindered the effective implementation ofHWC mitigation measures, these included but not limited to insufficient equipment and tools for chasing a way wild animals like gumboots, bangers, torches, vuvuzelas among others, some measures are tiresome to implement as they required one to stay in the crop garden whole day midst the bad weather such too much sun shine and heavy rainfall and diseases such as malaria due to mosquito bites. The researcher thus concluded that, there was no effective human-wildlife conflict mitigation measure in the area of study as there had been more cases of HWC with a recent incident where one of the residents in Mpumwe village had been attacked and injured by the elephant. Therefore, the management of MFNP should improve its preparedness and response to problem animal cases. More park staff should be recruited, oriented and trained to drive wild animals involved in the conflicts back in to the PA and sufficient supply of equipment used to fight against wild animals involved in the conflict like bangers, torches, vuvuzelas to chase away the wild animals