ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS
There is a problem with strategic planning and foresight in
Uganda. This is not to downgrade or to undermine the efforts of professionals
who do the national planning. Planning should move from downstream to upstream
to adopt a futuristic, rather than reactionary planning in view of looming
disasters that are abound.
In July 2016, I had a mini-chat with UPC faction President, and
the Lira Municipality Member of Parliament. The topic of our simple chat was
prompted by his curiosity into my experiences travelling around the country.
Each time I come to Uganda, I make an effort to visit two different parts of
Uganda, when time permits.
In our discussion, Hon. Akena averred the youth unemployment
was the major time bomb that would explode soon and was a national security issue.
I disagree with that assessment despite the harrowing numbers on Akena’s side that
speaks convincingly of the dangers posed by youth unemployment in Uganda. In Uganda,
the youth unemployment rates varies with source, between 64% and 83% with more
than 400 000 youths, 18 – 30 years qualifying with skills annually to compete
for less than 9000 available jobs (Ref to ACODE InfoSheet, 2014). And yet, 73%
of Uganda’s 38 million people are below the age of 30 years.
My argument was that when we see a problem manifesting, it
is no longer the cause. We were taught this in medical assessment and examinations.
That the youth population poses a threat to Uganda’s security is secondary to
what I considered primal and causal – that is, the rapid environmental
degradation and climatic change that looms over Uganda.
The environment is everything about human existence. But in
our Uganda, the damages that we have caused to our physical environment has
also permeated into the social and psyche. Uganda used to be a green country with
forests and forest reserves, today, only a handful of these exists. We have
launched an affront on our ground covers and what we see are plains making the
soil and land gullible to calamities such as soil erosion.
The population is rising fast with fertility rates estimated
at 5.96 births per woman or 43.4 births per 1000, with a population growth rate
of 3.22% annually. These figures shows that the rising population is pressing
high demands on land since the mode of production is not moving away from
agriculture to pre-industrial or industrial. Land and environment remains the
prime factors of contestation in the capitalist economy that Uganda operates.
Forests are being expropriated for charcoal, timber, during
expansion of infrastructure. Forest reserves are now industrial complexes and
wetlands are reclaimed for housing. Road construction companies are excavating
land to mine murram on a large scale, leave unfilled or wasted plots farmers
cannot easily reclaim.
One of the managers of National Water and Sewerage Cooperation,
narrated to water scarcity threat when the Oyitino Dam in Gulu dried in March this
year. Water surveillance report noted that the water levels at the banks of the
dam had reduced 4.7 meters deep.
There is a big problem that needs a pragmatic response and
enactment of futuristic policies to address the devaluing of our environment.
In Northern Uganda, certain powerful and politically connected persons are so
engrossed in charcoal business at the expense of the environment. Government
should make electricity and other affordable technologies, such as biogas and cooking-gas
available for people to adopt non-charcoal and firewood fuels. The smoke from
burning wood is a health hazard mostly to women and girl children which
contributes to high incidences of respiration diseases and preventable early
deaths.
Planners are therefore urged to move upstream, from
reactionary responses to pre-planning and ensuring strict adherence to policies
and laws that will protect our land, social relations and environment. A stable
and safe environment can usher youths a great opportunity for investment and
innovation, not plunder.
END
