




































In ternationa l
Scholars
Journa ls

 

African Journal of Environmental Economics and Management ISSN 2375-0707 Vol. 7 (8), pp. 001-010, 
August, 2019. Available online at www.internationalscholarsjournals.org © International Scholars Journals 

 

Author(s) retain the copyright of this article. 
 

 

 

Review 

 

Gaps, barriers and bottlenecks to sustainable 
land management (SLM) adoption in Uganda 

 
N. Banadda 

 
Department of Food Science and Technology, Makerere University, P. O. BOX 7062 Kampala, Uganda. 

E-mail: Banadda@Agric.Mak.Ac.Ug. 
 

Accepted 20 January, 2019 
 
Land degradation is a global problem and a great challenge to sustaining the biological, economic and social 
services provided by various ecosystems. This work assessed the causes of land degradation in Uganda and 
identified gaps, barriers and bottlenecks that hinder sustainable land management programmes adoption. The 
major human-induced types of land degradation in Uganda included soil erosion, soil fertility decline and 
habitat loss. The findings of this study also point to the fact that, the decline in soil fertility affected about 88% 
of the rural population that subsist on less than 2 ha per family constituting over three million small-scale 
holdings. In addition, this work traced the various policies, plans, programmes and strategic frameworks 
formulated during the period of economic growth in Uganda and assessed the main constraints therein that 
hinder up/out scaling best land management practices. 

 
Key words: Land use, land policy, sustainable land management, river basin, Uganda. 

 
INTRODUCTION 

 
Land degradation is a global problem and a great 
challenge to sustaining the biological, economic and 
social services provided by various ecosystems. The 
negative impacts of land degradation undermine 
livelihoods and their economic well-being, the 
environment and the nutritional status of more than one 
billion people in developing countries (Smyth and 
Dumanski, 1993). It is estimated that 12.5 million hectare 
(ha), which is 62.5% of land area in Uganda, are 
agricultural area (IFPRI, 2001). However, IFPRI (2001) 
also estimated that 97% of Uganda land suffers from 
some form of human-induced land degradation problems 
indicating that, the land degradation problem extends far 
beyond the arable land. The major human-induced types 
of land degradation in Uganda in terms of priority include 
soil erosion, soil fertility decline and habitat loss (MWLE, 
2006). The estimation of economic consequences of land 
degradation in Uganda is not comprehensive. However, 
there is qualitative evidence that land degradation is 
linked to stagnating and decreasing yields in food 
(cereals and bananas) and cash crops (Olson, 2004). In 
addressing land degradation, Uganda has over the years 
piloted best practices from research and appropriate 

 
 
 

 
technology development such as, the farmer field school 
as strategic entry point for sustainable land management 
(FAO, 2002). Uganda has also benefited from the 
partnerships with bilateral and multilateral donors in 
transboundary programmes, for example, the Kagera 
transboundary agro-ecosystem management, the Nile 
Basin Initiative, to mention but a few. Although, Uganda 
has made some commendable progress in piloting best 
practices in the various agro-ecological zones, this study 
identified various constraints that impede wider 
geographic replication of these success stories. Such 
impediments are gaps in knowledge and technological 
limitations, policy/institutional related barriers, low 
investment for the expansion of best practices and socio-
cultural constraints. Barriers, gaps and bottlenecks 
related to institutional and governance, economic and 
financial issues, technology and knowledge and 
social/behavioral considerations need to be addressed 
more comprehensively through adequate investment 
opportunities within national development frameworks. 
The objective of this work was to assess the causes of 
land degradation in Uganda and identify gaps, barriers 
and bottlenecks that hinder sustainable land management 

mailto:banadda@agric.mak.ac.ug


 
 
 

 

(SLM) programmes adoption. 

 

LAND DEGRADATION AND BEST PRACTICES 

 

Land degradation in Uganda 

 

The underlying causes of land degradation in Uganda are 
of socio-economic nature which are difficult to measure 
and include population pressure, poverty and policies 
(Matagi, 2002). In this section, the major human-induced 
types of land degradation in Uganda are discussed. 
 

 

Soil fertility decline 
 
Among other issues, this study also focused on soil 
fertility in Uganda. It suffices to note that, the decline in 
soil fertility is affecting about 88% of the rural population 
that subsist on less than 2 ha per family, constituting over 
three million small-scale holdings. Soil fertility decline is a 
serious problem particularly in the highlands of Uganda 
such as Kabale, Kisoro and the northern slopes of 
Muhavura mountains. A strategy to prevent, reverse or 
control land degradation due to soil fertility decline 
therefore, should prioritize the above areas for the 
introduction of SLM related initiatives. For the case of 
cereal yield trends, the yield per area had remained more 
or less stagnant (1.5 metric tons per ha) over the last 30 
years, while area under cereal production has doubled 
from about 800,000 ha in 1990 to 1.6 million ha 
(FAOSTAT, 2005). The area under banana cultivation 
has increased (1975 to 2005) from 100,000 ha to 
135,000, while the annual yield has increased from 3.3 to 
4.5 tons/ha, indicating a more or less stagnant or small 
increases in yields, which is linked to area increase. The 
area under cassava production had more or less 
remained around 0.5 million metric tons between 1980 to 
1999 and at around 1.5 million metric tons between 2002 
and 2005. The rise in production per hectare was 
probably as a result of improved cultural practices, 
adoption of good agronomic practices and variety 
improvement. There are also indications that, farmers are 
changing crop choice from banana to root crops due to 
decline in soil fertility. The traditional center of banana 
production in Mpigi and Mukono districts in central 
Uganda has been experiencing declining yields and 
farmers are switching to cassava and sweet potatoes 
(Olson, 2004). Meanwhile, banana production is moving 
towards western Uganda. If not addressed in a 
sustainable manner, crop production will continue to 
impact negatively on soil fertility and the quality of water 
resources since by consequence soil erosion sets in 
(Tonderski, 1996). 
 

 

Soil erosion 
 
Soil erosion is the most serious and  widespread  form of 

 
 
 
 

 

land degradation in Uganda with estimated average 
annual soil losses of more than 30 tons per ha in 
highlands (IFPRI, 2004). The severely affected districts 
included Kotido, Moroto, Northern Luwero, Mbale, Kisoro, 
Mbarara, Kabale, Mukono and Arua, where fragile 
vegetation cover had been destroyed by overstocking 
and overgrazing. Among other factors, the declining fish 
harvest from Lake Victoria is also attributed to siltation 
and eutrophication partly due to soil erosion (Okwerede 
et al., 2005). In other words, the eroded silt ends up in 
water bodies. An increase in turbidity, associated with the 
suspended soil material in the water has a potential 
impact on the tourism industry (Toumazis, 1995). From 
the foregoing, it is desirable to raise some reflections on 
the increasing pollution from land degradation in Uganda. 
Besides tourism, the socio-economic implications of land 
degradation in general and soil erosion in particular 
include increased rural poverty, increased vulnerability of 
communities to food insecurity, increased cost of food 
production, declined (foreign) revenues due to low fish 
harvest, rural to urban migration and encroachment into 
gazetted natural reserves. In fact, by the 1950s and the 
early 1960s popular fish species ngege (Oreochromis 
esculentus), had diminished so severely that, they had 
become commercially extinct (Kyomuhendo, 2002).  

Furthermore, between 1969 and 1977, the East Africa 
Water Fisheries Research Organization (EAFFRO), 
initially in collaboration with United Nations Development 
Programme/Food and Agriculture Organization, carried 
out a fish stock survey of Lake Victoria. A comparison of 
the trawl catch data made in the Nyanza Gulf in 1976 
with earlier records of 1969/1970, showed a reduction in 
stock densities of the most important species, tilapiines 
as well, L. Victorinus, Barbus species, mormyrids and S. 
mystus were virtually absent (Ogutu, 1990). Traditional 
lifestyles of lake shore communities have been disrupted 
and are crumbling (Banadda et al., 2009). In 15 years, 
the population of Kampala city had risen from 775,000 in 
1991 to 1.5 million in 2006 (UBOS, 2006). As the 
population grew and fishing methods advanced, over-
fishing also became a problem and catch sizes also 
dropped (Chege, 1995). 
 

 

Habitat loss 
 
Another serious land degradation type is loss of habitat 
through deforestation and encroachment of agriculture 
into protected areas and rangelands. The problem is 
most severe in eastern Uganda and south western 
highlands. Establishment of commercial ranches along 
the north-east to south-west cattle corridor and 
privatization of communal land for shifting agriculture 
have contributed significantly to the habitat loss (MAAIF, 
2004). Of importance is overgrazing and over-harvesting 
of vegetation in rangeland and forests for wood fuel and 
timber. The present forest cover in Uganda is estimated 
at about 3.6%, which is about 20% of its original value in 



 
 
 

 

1890, as a result of deforestation (MAAIF, 2004). 
Furthermore, MAAIF (2004) estimated that the forest 
cover decline in Uganda was 1.95% per annum. 
Deforestation has resulted in widespread soil erosion, 
floods, droughts and desertification (Olson, 2003). As 
mentioned in the preceding section, overall soil erosion is 
the lead cause of human-induced land degradation in 
Uganda, further resulting in serious environmental 
implications (MWLE, 2006). This has been evident in the 
cattle corridor of Uganda which includes the districts of 
Moroto, Kotido, Mbarara and northern Luwero. Soil 
erosion is responsible for the loss of land productivity in 
eastern Uganda, siltation of Lake Albert and Lake Victoria 
and rivers and the associated problems of eutrophication 
(MWLE, 20O6). This problem is severe where former 
wetlands adjacent to lakes and rivers have been 
converted to cropping and animal production. Two 
pollution issues related to increased animal production 
are occurred, that is, fecal contamination of water bodies 
and non-point source related pollution (Banadda et al., 
2009). According to Doran and Linn (1979), surface 
runoff from grazed pasture may reach 5 to 10 times 
higher fecal coliform concentration than from ungrazed 
one. Severely affected areas include Manafa, Kafu, 
Nyamwamba and the Nile River (MWLE, 2006). Heavy 
sedimentation experienced along the shores of water 
bodies is resulting in significant loss of fish production 
and consequently, deterioration in water quality. The loss 
of biodiversity and agro-ecosystem functions was 
reported in the Kagera River Basin (Olson, 2004). 
 
 

Best practices and success stories 
 
Several initiatives addressing land degradation and SLM 
in various parts of Uganda have been implemented 
successfully and need to be up-scaled to the national 
level. The success of some identified best practices has 
been anchored on the following facts, among others; their 
contribution to household incomes, stakeholder 
participation and partnerships, collaboration and syner-
gies dialogue and institutionalization of key break-
throughs, availability of markets for products, cost 
effectiveness of operations and bottom-up participatory 
process (FAO, 2002). The key practices include: 
 

 

The farmer field schools (FFS) 
 
This is a significant approach for promoting improved 
land management in Uganda. Such initiatives include the 
farmer field schools for soil productivity improvement, 
conservation agriculture and nutrient monitoring in 
eastern Uganda. 
 
 
Payment for environmental services (PES) 
 
Good ecosystem stewardship created conditions for 

 
 

 
 

 

higher productivity and greater direct environmental 
income, not only for the stewards (ideally farmers and 
other land resource managers), but also for the 
immediate surroundings. In Uganda, several ecosystem 
service payments, markets and mechanisms operates 
mainly through agreements/collaboration between 
government agencies, private sector/companies and non-
governmental organizations. Cases in focus include, the 
agreement between local communities and Uganda 
wildlife authority for park management, payment for 
ecotourism services in parks and sanctuaries and 
planting of trees for global carbon benefits. 
 

 

Past and ongoing initiatives of relevance to SLM 
approach 

 

These include bee farming in Sironko district in eastern 
Uganda, community termite infestation control in 
rangelands and enhancing rapid information dissemi-
nation at community level through radio and internet in 
Nakasongola district (Central Uganda), community-based 
afforestation and integrated community agroforestry in 
Ntungamo district (Western Uganda), rain water 
harvesting for domestic use in Mbarara (Western 
Uganda), integrated livestock health improvement and 
conflict resolution in Moroto district (North-eastern 
Uganda) and promotion of farmer innovations approach 
to rural development in Katakwi district (Eastern 
Uganda). 
 

 

GAPS, BARRIERS AND BOTTLENECKS TO SLM 
ADOPTION 

 

There are numerous sustainable land management 
(SLM) projects/programmes aimed at addressing land 
degradation in Uganda. These have been successfully 
piloted by development partners, non-governmental 
organizations, community-based organizations and the 
government of Uganda. The best practices in these 
initiatives are ready for institutional/policy mainstreaming 
as well as for up-scaling and out-scaling at all levels, that 
is, local, national and regional. However, progress in 
mainstreaming of these best practices which will promote 
SLM practices faces several barriers, bottlenecks and 
gaps which must be addressed. Thus, some of the 
constraints are discussed 
 
 
Institutional and governance constraints 

 

The institutional and governance issues are major 
barriers that hinder the adoption of good land 
management practices. The leading constraints in this 
category are weak land and land-use policies that are not 
area-specific and that do not effectively protect over 85% 
of the total land. This is also weakened by poor of the 



 
 
 

 

existing laws and regulations due to lack of technical and 
financial resources coupled with a lack of political will for 
enforcement of land related laws. There is a need to raise 
the national priority on the effective implementation of 
land laws and especially to promote land tenure systems 
that will encourage investment in SLM related activities. 
This will also depend very much on the improvement of 
planning and implementation capacities of government 
institutions charged with land and land-use policy 
implementation. Gaps and operational weaknesses have 
been identified in the National Agricultural Advisory 
Services (NAADS) approach, which has not factored in 
issues of tenure, culture, capital and insecurity in its 
programmes. 
 

 

Economic and financial constraints 

 

The adoption of good land management practices is also 
constrained by economic and financial factors, which 
largely affect the levels of investment in SLM related 
activities. Low public and private investment in research 
and technology and under-funding of extension services 
and public institutions dealing with environment and 
natural resources, present a serious constraint to SLM 
adoption and mainstreaming in Uganda. Low national 
budgets do not make land degradation and SLM priority 
issues. Ultimately, it is difficult to strengthen research-
extension-farmer/end user linkages that are critical for 
sustainable adoption of good husbandry practices. Lack 
of economic incentives such as compensation 
mechanisms for environmental services is a barrier to 
investing in high capital and labor demanding SLM 
technologies, such as soil and water conservation 
technologies. This can be attributed to a poor payment for 
environmental services system and weak institu-
tionalization of payment for environmental services; best 
practices in Uganda. One of the key lessons learnt in 
promoting preventive measures to combat land 
degradation is to put in place SLM packages that link 
economic and financial incentives for the majority of 
subsistence smallholders who own less than 2 ha per 
household. 
 
 

Technological and knowledge constraints 
 
Despite the progress made in research and technology 
related to land management in Uganda (IFPRI, 2001, 
2004; MWLE, 2006), there are clear indications of 
technology and knowledge gaps and barriers to adoption 
of SLM related practices. One of the constraints is lack of 
expertise/low capacity in extension services for land 
management even at institutional level [National 
Agricultural Research Organization (NARO)], which can 
be partly attributed to low investment in capacity building 
and financial facilitation from national external resources. 
The problem is aggravated by low levels of awareness 

 
 
 
 

 

and understanding among land users about the 
environmental impacts of land degradation and its 
relationship to poverty and decline in household incomes. 
These issues need to be addressed in future SLM 
initiatives if long term impacts and sustainability of good 
land management is to be realized. The inherent 
vulnerability of soils to degradation under various land-
use options also limits the level of application and 
success of good land management practices, especially 
because it is expensive to address them. It is therefore 
expedient to have area- and case-specific technological 
packages. 
 

 

Social and behavioral constraints 
 
Unfavorable social and behavioral characteristics among  
various stakeholders particularly that of 
farmer/pastoralists are a major constraint in the efforts to 
promote SLM approaches. First, poverty which has 
already been perceived as an underlying cause of land 
degradation in Uganda is sustained by external and 
internal forces such as declining soil fertility and 
productivity of land, vulnerability to climate variability 
especially persistent droughts and other natural 
calamities, epidemic diseases, unskilled human capital 
due to low education levels and poor health due to 
debilitation diseases such as malaria and HIV/AIDS. 
Poverty in Uganda is also hinged upon inadequate 
possession of land resources, access to credit and 
financial resources and poor physical infrastructure such 
as markets and roads (Matagi, 2002). With limited 
livelihood alternatives, it is difficult for farmers/pastoralists 
to adopt good land management practices, some of 
which seem to take long before benefits can be realized.  

In the rangelands, pastoralists resist livestock de-
stocking recommendations due to their preoccupation 
with risk management during drought periods and also 
due to cattle rustling. Agricultural and pastoral 
households also maintain a large family size as 
insurance for constant source of human labor and 
security for old age. The censuses of 1980, 1991 and 
2002 put the population in Uganda at 12.6 million, 16.1 
million and 26 million, respectively. In barely two 
decades, the population in Uganda had doubled. Since 
1991, the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) estimated 
that, the average rate of annual increase has been 
around 2.5% despite the HIV/AIDS infection rates which 
have profoundly affected demographic patterns (UBOS, 
2006). This rate of growth is expected to continue and it 
is predicted that it will reach 55 million by 2025. These 
and other social factors significantly are likely to lower the 
rate of adoption of SLM practices in Uganda. 
 

 

POLICIES AND STRATEGIC FRAMEWORKS 
 
Uganda has a  comprehensive set  of  policy,  strategies 



 
 
 

 

and action plans to address the issues of land 
degradation. However, these initiatives have not been 
very effective in reversing the land degradation trends. 
The country lacks the resources, both technical and 
financial, to tackle the issues of SLM within the 
environmental management and coordination act. As 
such, some of the national strategic frameworks 
formulated are discussed. 
 

 

National strategic frameworks and SLM approach 

 

The poverty eradication action plan (PEAP) 

 

Poverty incidence in Uganda is closely linked to land 
degradation problems (Akello, 2002; Nkonya et al., 2002; 
Wood, 2002) and it could be the main obstacle in 
addressing land degradation, since resources are 
required for investing in good land management 
practices. In 1995, Uganda started a process of deve-
loping a comprehensive and sustainable development 
strategy, with an overall objective of wiping out abject 
poverty in the country. This process culminated in the 
formulation in 1997 of the PEAP, which aims at reducing 
the population living in absolute poverty to 10% in 2017. 
In 2000 this was revised to incorporate information 
generated from the widened consultations and analysis, 
particularly, from the pilot participatory poverty 
assessments. Based on the PEAP as the guiding policy 
framework, Uganda has pursued the development and 
implementation of sector-wide policies, investment plans 
and programmes, with the participation of as many 
stakeholders as possible. As such, two strategic action 
plan frameworks are discussed. 
 

 

The NAP/United Nations convention for combating 
desertification framework 

 

The NAP is an integral part of the national economic and 
social development and environment protection plans. 
The United Nations convention for combating 
desertification (UNCCD) calls for the formulation and 
implementation of NAP as the central element in a 
strategy to combat desertification/land degradation and to 
mitigate the effects of drought. Under the national 
UNCCD framework, the government of Uganda had 
made several efforts that included entrenching NAP 
priorities within the main national development 
frameworks such as the PEAP, and efforts to mainstream 
NAP into the various sectoral plans and programmes. 
The environment and natural resources sector, which is a 
key to NAP implementation, has also been centrally 
positioned and recognized in the PEAP. The capacity of 
NAP to address land degradation in the country and 
especially in dry lands is hampered by low capacity. 

 
 
 
 

 

The plan for modernization of agriculture (PMA) 

 

The PMA focuses on agricultural modernization and 
commercialization through a multi-sectoral approach to 
addressing the constraints facing agricultural-based 
livelihoods. Interventions in the PMA included research 
and technology development, advisory services, rural 
financial services, rural infrastructure, sustainable 
national resource use and management. Basically, PMA 
seeks to promote sustainable use and management of 
the environment and natural resources. Since the PMA is 
seen as a broad strategy within the framework of PEAP, 
the harmonization of approaches among all the keys 
stakeholders in the PEAP with the PMA is critical and 
lacking at this stage due to limitations of technical and 
financial resources. 
 

 

Environment and natural resources policy 
frameworks and SLM approach 

 

Land policy 

 

The government of Uganda has formulated a land sector 
strategic plan (LSSP) for the period ranging from 2001 to 
2011, to be implemented in two phases. The key issues 
of sustainable land management addressed by LSSP 
are; ownership and management of reserved land (forest 
reserves, national parks, wildlife reserves, lakes, rivers 
and wetlands) under the trusteeship of government/local 
government, management of common property 
resources, individual land use and planning and 
development of urban areas. LSSP acknowledges that, 
there is a lack of a holistic, clear land use policy and 
national and district physical development plans.  

The implementation of LSSP has been constrained by 
among other factors, the delay in approval of the land act 
amendments, funding (Timing and predictability of flow of 
funds) and political insecurity and instability (Akello, 
2002). The smooth implementation of LSSP assumes all 
areas in the country are accessible. The insecurity and 
instability in the northern and north-eastern districts of the 
country has undermined the initiative. The land act also 
lacks a clear policy on equitable access to land among 
family members and hence, development of land policy, 
land-use policy and land sector laws are being addressed 
in the LSSP. The rate of implementing land reforms 
aimed at preventing land degradation and also creating 
an enabling policy environment for the adoption of 
sustainable land management practices is slow and not 
well synchronized with the expected pace of 
implementing national sustainable development plans. 
Only 15% of the national land is registered under Mailo, 
freehold and leasehold. Hence, the most serious 
challenge to introducing SLM is insecurity of land tenure. 
The process of land titling and certification is expensive 
(US $250 at the minimum) and therefore, remains a long- 



 
 
 

 

term objective. SLM should experiment with pilot areas in 
the various land tenure systems to see if the positive 
results of SLM can catalyze the process of land 
demarcation and definition of land ownership and land-
use rights. For this challenge to be overcome there is a 
need to build the capacity at national, district and country 
levels for the establishment of land information system 
that will support and inform national land and land-use 
policies and also serve the needs of other stakeholders. 
 

 

Environmental policy 

 

The government of Uganda has developed the national 
environment action plan (NEAP) to provide a framework 
for addressing environment and natural resource 
management concerns. The National Environment 
Management Authority (NEMA) established by the 
National Environment Act (2000), is the leading organ of 
the NEAP and oversees natural resources management. 
The NEAP/NEMA implementation process over the past 
two years had emphasized capacity building for 
environment management at the district and lower levels. 
Although, the efforts by NEAP/NEMA for institutional 
capacity building are commendable, there is a need to 
formulate environmental checklists at all levels (national, 
district, and local/community), to monitor development 
activities in compliance with national sustainable 
development policies.  

One major weakness of environmental and natural 
resources legal frameworks is the weak capacity for 
enforcement and implementation. Though several 
institutional reforms have been made, the review of 
associated laws has been too slow, making 
implementation of laws rather difficult especially in cases 
where environment enforcement officers have had to deal 
with high profile politicians. 
 

 

Forest policy 

 

The national forestry plan (NFP) formulated in 2003 
seeks to increase incomes and quality of life of poor 
people, increase economic productivity, employment in 
forest industries and achieve sustainable resource 
management in the central forests. The plan recognizes 
the need to integrate with NAP/UNCCD framework for 
combating land degradation. However, NFP falls short of 
specifying the linkages with the NAP framework and also 
with PMA. The plan will draw on the private sector to 
promote sustainable forest management practices. 
 

 

Rangeland management policy 

 

Although, rangelands cover 43% of Uganda and support 
over 6 million people, there is no coherent rangeland 

 
 
 
 

 

policy that addresses the broad range of environmental 
issues such as land tenure, immigration of people from 
densely populated areas, privatization of land along the 
north east - south west cattle corridor and expansion of 
crop cultivation into rangelands. The policy also does not 
clearly safeguard the land rights of pastoralists to avoid 
conflicts over privatization of common property rights. 
The current initiative to review and formulate a new 
rangeland management policy is an opportunity for 
addressing the current driving and underlying forces that 
are responsible for land degradation. 
 

 

Other land-related policies relevant to land 
degradation and SLM 

 

Although, not discussed in detail, several other sectoral 
policies and strategies that are likely to influence SLM 
implementation exists in Uganda and they include; 
National Food Security Strategy, National Wetlands 
Policy, National Water Action Plan, National Biodiversity 
Strategy and Action Plan. 
 

 

Ongoing SLM initiatives 

 

Some of the key ongoing SLM initiatives are described 
as; 
 

Kagera transboundary agro-ecosystem management 

 

It is a multi-focal project addressing land degradation, 
biodiversity and climate change with relevance to 
international waters. A key aspect of the project relevant 
to SLM is the creation of a communication and education 
strategy to share and disseminate the best practices in 
Uganda, Burundi, Tanzania, Rwanda and Democratic 
Republic of Congo (D.R Congo). 
 

 

Integrated nutrient management to attain sustainable 
productivity increases in East African farming 
systems 

 

This project addresses the serious decline in soil fertility 
and crop productivity in smallholder farms in Uganda 
through institutional strengthening for farm or catchment 
level technologies, strengthening the policy to address 
soil nutrient depletion and the generation and 
dissemination of appropriate soil fertility management 
technologies. 
 

 

Lake Victoria environmental management project 
(LVEMP) 

 

This project covers Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania and it 



 
 
 

 

is aimed at supporting the governments through harmo-
nization of legislation for environment and strengthening 
the policy and institutional capacities for biodiversity 
conservation. 
 

 

Development strategy and investment plan by the 
Ministry of Agriculture, animal industry and fisheries 
(MAAIF) 

 

The development strategy and investment plan has 
identified several intervention areas relevant to SLM such 
as capacity building for water harvesting, soil and water 
conservation, agricultural research and technology, 
agricultural planning and policy and agricultural 
advisory/extension service through NAADS. 
 

 

Payment for environmental services (PES) 

 

This is a good practice and has proved to be a good 
approach in scaling up SLM. PES initiatives are common 
for water, biodiversity and carbon/forest projects. Cases 
in focus include the agreement between local 
communities and Uganda wildlife authority for park 
management, payment for ecotourism services in parks 
and sanctuaries and planting trees for global carbon 
benefits.  

Uganda shares important natural resources with the 
neighboring countries, which calls for inter-country and 
trans-national cooperation and policy harmonization. An 
illustration of a National Park will suffice. A national park 
lies in the Virunga Mountains in the eastern D.R Congo 
and then, borders Rwanda and Rwenzori mountains in 
Uganda. Interestingly, in each of the three countries, the 
national park has a different name. In D.R Congo, it is 
known as Virunga National Park while in Rwanda, it is 
National Park and in Uganda, Rwenzori National Park. 

Covering 7,800 km
2
, it was established in 1925 as 

Africa's first National Park and world's second to 
Yellowstone (United States of America).  

Intensive poaching and the civil wars in the respective 
three countries seriously damaged its wildlife population 
and the capacity to monitor and control activities therein 
in the recent past. Land invasions had also challenged 
the park authorities in the three countries. Widespread 
depletion of forest due to fuel-wood demand by refugees 
had also impacted the park negatively. In addition, cross 
border conflicts have had a toll on SLM initiatives. 
Uganda has been at the center of conflicts, both internal 
and external and so civil/political/ethnic tensions are 
common in Uganda and some neighboring countries such 
as Sudan, D.R. Congo, Kenya and Rwanda. Cattle 
rustling and fighting (Karamoja of Uganda/Pokots of 
Kenya) over pasture and water resources is also a 
pertinent issue. In this paper some transboundary and 
regional conventions and agreements are discussed as 

 
 
 
 

 

follows: 
 

 

Transboundary and regional conventions and 
agreements 

 

Past and present regional activities, conventions and 
agreements that impacted the policy framework in place 
include: The Lake Victoria fisheries convention of 1994 
which aims at regulating and enhancing fisheries on Lake 
Victoria. The Lake Victoria basin is threatened by 
overgrazing, poor crop cultivation, removal of vegetation 
cover (Matagi, 2002), water quality degradation (Cowi, 
1998; Emerton et al., 1999; Okwerede et al., 2005), 
uncontrolled development along the Lake shore and river 
banks and industrial waste (Banadda et al., 2009). 
Currently, Lake Victoria environment management 
project discussed in the preceding section is being 
implemented by Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania to arrest 
land degradation and water quality deterioration; the 
Kagera basin agreement of 1977 whose objective is to 
ensure equitable entitlement of each riparian state to the 
use of the River Nile waters. The Kagera river basin 
occupies a strategic position in Africa providing up to 
10% of the water of the downstream Nile basin and forms 
the upper part 75% of the Lake Victoria basin. The lower 
Kagera river basin confers a set of global biodiversity 
benefits which are now threatened by rapid population 
pressures, land-use changes and associated land 
degradation as a result of deforestation and encroach-
ment of wetlands. In Uganda, of the Nakivubo wetland 
(the largest) original area of 5.29 km², it was estimated 
that, 2.9 km² of Nakivubo remains uncovered (Cow and 
VKI, 1998) and thus, 2.39 km² or 45% had been modified 
or reclaimed. The consequences of this encroachment on 
the wetlands contributing negatively to water quality in 
the Lake Victoria and on the ecological balance is fairly 
well documented (Cowi and VKI, 1998; Okwerede et al., 
2005; Banadda et al., 2009). Clearing forests and 
wetlands for agriculture is taking place in parts of 
Burundi, D.R. Congo, Uganda and Rwanda. The present 
forest cover in Uganda is estimated at about 3.6%, which 
is about 20% of its original value in 1890, as a result of 
deforestation (MAAIF, 2004). It is therefore of paramount 
importance that land degradation initiatives should bear 
transboundary characteristics for SLM. 
 

 

RESPONSE OPTIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 
FOR SLM MAINSTREAMING AT MULTIPLE LEVELS 
 

 

Although, Uganda has a comprehensive set of policy 
strategies and action plans to address the issues of land 
degradation, these initiatives have not been very effective 
in reversing the land degradation trends. As such, 
strategic choices to address identified gaps and barriers 



 
 
 

 

associated with the constraints discussed earlier are 
described. 
 

 

Institutional and governance strategic choices 

 

Strengthen national development/institutional 
frameworks 

 

There is a need to harmonize SLM initiative with the 
existing initiatives particularly under United Nations 
Convention for Combating Desertification (UNCCD)-
National Action Programmes (NAP) framework. In 
addition, SLM approach may be introduced through the 
focal national institutions that are mandated with the 
implementation of Comprehensive Africa Agriculture 
Development Programme (CAADP). This should be 
harmonized with NAP since SLM approach is aimed at 
preventing land degradation and maintaining sustainable 
agriculture. There is need for coordination of activities 
within NAP framework for effective and efficient resource 
utilization targeting sustainable land management. The 
NAP structure is linked to the local and sub-regional 
initiatives to combat land degradation and is therefore the 
most ideal mechanism of linking sub-regional and 
international SLM initiatives. 
 

 

Support land and land-use policies 

 

Issues of access to land and land tenure security are 
critical in the plan to modernize agriculture for economic 
growth and poverty reduction. The plan to establish a 
land information system is an important aspect of SLM 
approach particularly for the decision makers at all levels. 
Such a plan is to go hand in hand with the necessary 
political support for the enforcement of land related laws. 
 

 

Mainstreaming SLM at sub-regional and regional 
levels 

 

SLM practices have been highlighted in the New 
Partnership for African Development (NEPAD)-CAADP 
country programmes, which provide a good entry point for 
coalition of development partners to contribute technical 
and financial resources at sub-regional and regional 
levels. 
 

 

Economic and financial strategic choices 

 

Financial and technical support for the 
decentralization of responsibilities to district and 
local institutions 

 

Establishment and support  of  environmental  services 

 
 
 
 

 

need to be reflected in the budget allocation. This 
approach will facilitate compensation mechanisms for 
investment in high cost practices such as soil and water 
conservation measures. 
 

 

Integration of poverty strategic programme with SLM 
approach 

 

This strategy addresses economic and financial 
incentives that will support livelihoods dependent on 
natural resources and agricultural/rural development. The 
national economic recovery strategy is largely based on 
the PMA policy which supports the sustainable 
agriculture and management of natural resources. A fair 
share of PMA resources are expected to support SLM 
practices. 
 

 

Budgetary support for SLM approach 

 

According to the Maputo (Mozambique) declaration of 
2002, the Ugandan government is expected to raise 
support of agriculture to 10% of the national budget. This 
target is yet to be achieved. Initiatives should continue 
catalyzing SLM mainstreaming and funding through 
coalition of partners since national commitment in co-
financing SLM activities are likely to be constrained by 
other macro-economic considerations. The NAP 
process/mechanism should ensure Uganda's national 
desertification fund and community development fund to 
support the SLM approach. 
 

 

Technological and knowledge choices 

 

The lessons from integrated area-based development 
activities in east Africa are relevant in the introduction of 
SLM approaches. At the community level, strong 
emphasis on facilitating farmer-to-farmer information 
sharing and technology transfer have been effective in 
farmers' field schools experiences in east Africa (FAO, 
2002). Policy and institutional reforms are required for 
enhancing the participatory technology development and 
for effective dissemination mechanisms that take 
cognizance of decentralized governance framework. 
Some of the technology transfer priorities are discussed 
further. 
 

 

Support sustainable agricultural practices that 
conserve natural resources 

 

Promotion of conservation agriculture (CA) is strongly 
recommended for its unique contribution to SLM. The CA 
approach embraces researcher-extension-farmer linkage 
for up-scaling SLM practices. 



 
 
 

 

Soil nutrient management and fertility 

 

Ongoing activities entail controlling soil erosion problems, 
use of organic/farm and green manure, use of cover 
crops and introduction of nitrogen fixing plants. 
 

 

Irrigation and water management 

 

Promotion of water lifting technologies, water harvesting, 
rehabilitation of smallholder irrigation schemes and 
national capacity for sustainable smallholder irrigation 
technologies may be a win to win situation where food 
security and livelihood support goes hand in hand with 
sustainable land management. 
 

 

Rangeland management and livestock management 

 

Given the high vulnerability of dry land ecosystems from 
human-induced land degradation, preventive, restoration 
and control measures are critical investment areas. 
Investment in land-use planning is an effective strategy to 
minimize negative environmental impacts from ad hoc 
settlements and encroachment of cultivations in key 
production areas. Other potential areas of investment in 
sustainable rangeland management include: policy 
reforms to define land tenure and community property 
rights; participatory community land use planning; 
investment in natural resources-based conflict resolution 
mechanisms; protection of wetlands key production areas 
against conversion to agriculture; livestock productivity 
improvement and rationalized water development 
activities; development of livestock marketing infra-
structure to facilitate livestock off-take to control 
overstocking and overgrazing problems. 
 

 

Social and behavioral choices 
 
Investment in farmer education and extension service is 
the most effective way of dealing with social and 
behavioral change. The empowerment of farmer 
organizations, community based organizations (CBOs) 
and non-governmental organizations with information on 
SLM are one major way of changing the mindset of land 
users. The participation of religious institutions is critical 
in educating land users on good land stewardship 
principles in accordance with the accepted moral norms. 
The integration of SLM activities with PEAP and PMA will 
ensure that, these national development frameworks are 
responsive to SLM concerns. The SLM approach should 
be relevant and acceptable to small-scale farmers who 
are subsisting on 36% of Uganda land area. Investment 
in strengthening governance/leadership of community 
based organizations to deal with issues of conflict 
management, education and community health needs is 
also necessary. 

 
 
 
 

 

CONCLUSION 

 

In this work, the major human induced types of land 
degradation in Uganda which include soil erosion, soil 
fertility decline and habitat loss were discussed The 
outcomes and experiences of past sustainable land 
management initiatives in Uganda have brought out 
various lessons worth noting, which include a key lesson 
learnt in promoting conservation which is, unless farmers 
can expect an economic return equal to their level of 
investment, there will be little incentive for them to adopt 
sustainable land management practices. Another lesson 
learnt was that, participatory approaches to land 
management involving stakeholder greatly contribute to 
sustainable productivity and conservation of land. It is 
prudent to support greater involvement of farmers and 
other stakeholders in participatory technology 
development and transfer.  

In conclusion the success of some identified best 
practices in dealing with the problem of land degradation 
has been anchored on these facts; their contribution to 
household incomes, threading partnerships, collaboration 
and synergies dialogue and institutionalization of key 
breakthroughs, availability of markets for products, cost 
effectiveness of operations and bottom-up participatory 
process. 
 

 

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT 

 

The author is thankful to the Inter- University Council of 
East Africa (ICUEA) through VicRes for funding this 
research. The scientific responsibility is assumed by its 
author. 
 

 
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