Effects of Population Influx on Wetlands: Case Study of Lubiji Wetland Namungoona Kampala District
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EFFECTS OF POPULATION INFLUX ON WETLANDS: CASE STUDY OF LUBIJI WETLAND NAMUNGOONA KAMPALA DISTRICT BY NASRA MOHAMMED BEM134898/1 13/DU A RESEARCH REPORT SUBMITTED TO THE SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING AND APPLIED SCIENCES IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF A DEGREE IN ENVIROMENTAL SCIENCES OF KAMPALA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY JUNE, 2014 DECLARATION I NASRA MOHAMMED do declare that this research report “Effects of population Influx on wetlands; a case study of Lubiji wetland Namungoona Kampala District” is my original piece of work and has never been submitted to any university or institution of higher learning as an academic research for any academic award, recognition or acceptance. NASRA MOHAMMED Si~.. .. ... 1 APPROVAL This piece of work has been supervised and approved by Ms. Katongole Hadijjah School of Engineering and Applied Sciences; Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences Kampala International University. Si~atur~ Date.. .2 ~~ 11 DEDICATION I am dedicating this piece of work to my most beloved father Mubiru Said, my sister Munira Ally, and people who have been there for me like Tumwebaze Hasfah and Ssewanonda Mustafa for all the inspiration, love and care shown to me in this lifetime. May the Good Lord shower you with unending blessing. 111 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Heartfelt gratitude goes to God the almighty for the gift of life without which I could not possibly do anything. Several people have offered advice, helped and encouraged me in the course of this study. I sincerely thank all of them. Specifically, I thank Ms. Katongole Hadijjah who has taken the trouble to supervise this piece of work, been there at all times answering all the questions and correcting where necessary. Your guidance and discussions helped shape this particular work study. I greatly appreciate your availability and accessibility at all times. Thank you. I also acknowledge the immeasurable contribution of the Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences in Kampala International University for the tireless inputs through the lecturers who have played a very important role in transforming towards my achievements. Thank you. May the Almighty God Bless you all! iv TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION APPROVAL DEDICATION ACKNOWLEDGEMENT iv TABLE OF CONTENTS v LIST OF ACRONYMS LIST OF TABLES ix ABSTRACT CHAPTER ONE 1 INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND 1 1.0. Introduction 1 1.1 Background 1 1.2 Problem statement 4 1.3 Purpose of the study 4 1.4 Objectives of the study 4 1.5 Research questions 5 1.6 Scope of the study s 1.6.1 Geographical scope s 1.6.2 Content scope 1.6.3 Time scope s 1.7 Significance of the study s 1.8 The scope of the study 6 CHAPTER TWO 7 LITERATURE REVIEW 7 2.0. Introduction 7 2.1 The concept of wetlands 7 2.2 Global statistic on wetlands Loss 7 2.3 The Benefits of Wetlands 8 2.4 Impact of population influx on wetlands within the country 11 2.5 Effects of Wetland Loss in Kampala 13 2.6 Ways of maintaining and conserving wetlands 15 v CHAPTER THREE .18 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY .18 3.0 Introduction 18 3.1 Research Design 18 3.2 Population of the Study 18 3.3 Sampling techniques 20 3.3.1 Puiposive sampling 20 3.3.2 Simple random sampling 20 3.4 Sample Selection Size 20 3.5 Sources of data 21 3.5.1 Primary data source 21 3.5.2 Secondary data source 21 3.6 Procedures and instruments 21 3.6.1 Questionnaire 21 3.6.2 Observations 21 3.7 Validity and reliability 22 3.7.1 Validity 22 3.7.2 Reliability of instrument 22 3.8 Ethical Considerations 22 3.9 Data analysis 22 3.10 Limitations of the study 23 CHAPTER FOUR 24 DATA PRESENTATION AND INTERPRETATION OF FINDiNGS 24 4.1 Findings from responses about the background of respondents who participated in the sample 24 4.2 Findings from responses about the benefits of Wetlands in the country of Uganda 28 4.3 Findings from responses about the impact of population influx on the Lubigi wetlands ecosystem within Kampala 29 4.4 Findings from responses about the Ways of maintaining and conserving wetlands in the country 30 CHAPTER FIVE 32 SUMMARY OF FINDINGS, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 32 5.0 Introduction 32 vi 5.1 Discussion .32 5.2 Summary of major findings 32 5.3 Conclusion 34 5.4 Recommendations 35 REFERENCES 37 APPENDIX I: Research questionnaires for respondents during data collection 39 APPENDIX II Interview guide 43 vii LIST OF ACRONYMS NEMA National Environmental Management Authority UWA Uganda Wildlife Authority WWF World Wildlife Fund MDGs Millenium Development Goals UBOS Uganda Bureau of Statistics SPSS Statistical Package for Social Scientists US United States viii LIST OF TABLES Table 1 .Shows the gender status, marital status, education background and age of the respondents. Table 2.Shows the categories of respondents who participated in the sample. Table 3.Shows the benefits of wetlands in the country Uganda, Table 4.Shows the impact of population influx on wetland ecosystem within Kampala. Table 5.Shows the ways of maintaining and conserving wetlands in the country. ix ABSTRACT This study was all about examining the effects of population influx on wetlands by considering Lubigi wetland Narnungona Kampala district as case study. The researcher came up with four specific objectives which acted as research guidelines during data collection and these are: to investigate the benefits of Wetlands in the country, to assess the Impact of population influx on wetlands ecosystem within Kampala, to identify the Effects of Wetland Loss in the Kampala and to establish the Ways of maintaining and conserving wetlands in the country Qualitative and quantitative research design was used in the study to ensure proper collection of data from the respondents; qualitative research was used by the researcher through asking broad questions and collects word data from participants. During sampling, the researcher considered 133 people who acted as respondents and these were got from the farmers within the area of During data collection the researcher collected data from Government officials, Farmers and Business people. These were categorized in the following manner; 60 Farmers, 27 business people, 20 brick makers, fish famers and 13 government officials from different organizations such as NEMA, UWA among others who are the stake holders of wetlands in the country. Both Primary and secondary data sources were used as data collection sources, questionnaire, observation and interview data instruments were employed during data collection and data collected was analyzed using the SPSS and M-Excel as data analysis packages. Findings shows that through questionnaires in the field, the researcher revealed a number of challenges faced in maintaining wetlands within the area of Namungona such as, settlement, construction, population increase among others, the following recommendations were made so as to curb the challenges faced in conservation of wetlands in Narnungona area, these were as follows; The government through the organization of National Environment Management Authority should put tight restrictions and regulations which could help in preventing people from destructing wetlands in the area of Kampala and the country in general. Valuation of wetlands in Kampala should be considered, the value of a wetland system to the earth and to humankind is one of the most important valuations that can be computed for sustainable development of wetlands within the country. x CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND 1.0 Introduction This chapter deals with the background of the study, statement of the problem, objectives of the study, research questions, the scope of the study, significant of the study and the conceptual frame work. 1.1 Background Kampala’s population has been increasing from 50,000 in 1962 to 458,503 in 1980 to774,247 in 1991 to 1,208,544 in 2002 the most recent census. This has led to the rapid expansion of the city from the originally known seven hills to wetlands and valleys in a bid to accommodate the population. There is massive encroachment on wetlands and green belts for establishment of settlements and factories. Furthermore, Kampala’s position as the commercial and political seat of Uganda has influenced people to migrate from rural areas to the city in search of employment and ‘better standards of living’. There is thus need to extend social services and sustainable development initiatives in the rural areas to curb rural to urban migration. The study will explore the impact of population growth on the health of ecosystems and biodiversity in wetlands. The study will also emphasize wise use of ecosystems while maintaining their ecological character. (Omolo-Okalebo et al 2010) observed that Kampala became a city by the Royal Charter of September 28, 1962, with an estimated population of 50,000. By 1980, the population had increased to 458,503, and 774,241 in 1991, and 1,208,544 in 2002 (most recent census) at average annual growth rates of between 3.14 percent and 5.61 percent. In 1968 when the then municipalities of Kampala city, Kibuga (Mengo), Kawempe and Nakawa were merged into one administrative unit, there were differences in the pace of development (Ssebaana 2000). Generally, planning was confined to the original city boundaries. The city originally comprised of seven hills and most of the development concentrated in this area. As citizens migrated to the city to participate in trade and commerce, the population increased greatly encroaching on the city’s ecosystem. Today, many settlements have sprung up in wetland areas. Also, the city’s green belts are continually being allocated to investors for establishment of supermarkets, leisure parks and factories. 1 The city of Kampala is made of 172 square kilometers, a big fraction of which are swamps with an annual population growth rate of 5.6 1% (Nyakaana 2004).