Mother and the calf walking at Ziwa ranch is Nakasongola. UWA is set to translocate over 20 of them to AWR. All Photos by UWA
By Arnest Tumwesige
Madi-Okollo: In Beatrice Lekuru’s living room is a plastic sculpture of a rhino, grey in color, placed on the table.
“I bought this piece at UGX 30,000 from Kampala last year in December,” Lekuru quickly responds to an inquiry, pointing to its source. Lekuru lives in Madali village, which borders Ajai Wildlife Reserve (AWR) in Madi-Okollo District.
“My daughter had been demanding to see a rhinoceros. When she was 10 years old in 2022, I told her of our ancestry, which is rooted in the rhinoceros. When I went to Kampala, I accidentally bumped into a hawker carrying this piece. Without hesitation, I had to buy it,” the 38-year-old joyfully told GNNA.
Lekuru’s daughter is among the thousands of Madi dialect-speaking residents in Madi-Okollo and beyond whose appetite to see live rhinoceros is at the brim. This follows the government’s announcement to translocate about 20 white rhinoceros from Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary in Nakasongola District to Ajai by 2025.
The Start and Extinction of AWR
A survey report by the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) indicates that Ajai Wildlife Reserve (AWR) is one of the twelve wildlife reserves managed by UWA. It was named after a famous chief called Ajai. In 1937, Chief Ajai declared the area a game sanctuary to protect “unique wild animals” the white rhinos. In 1965, after the chief’s death, the sanctuary was officially gazetted as Ajai Game Reserve by SI No. 147 of 1965.
The January 2020 report presented to the Madi-Okollo local government shows that during the 1950s to 1960s, Ajai was a famous tourist and spot hunter’s destination in the then West Nile region, earning the government a lot of revenue. Game meat was shared with local people.
In the late 1960s, over 100 white rhinos were translocated into Ajai from outlying areas of West Nile. However, due to lawlessness and poor management during the 1970s and 1980s, the rhino population and other big game species declined significantly.
By 1979, white rhinos were no longer seen in the area, and in 1994, the last two remaining buffaloes were killed by poachers in Obei swamp. Other animal populations, such as Uganda kobs, warthogs, waterbucks, hippos, and sitatunga, also declined greatly due to poaching.
Crafting a Plan to Revamp AWR
From the mid-1980s, Uganda had no rhinos left despite them being the signature animals of AWR. In 2005, conservationists and the government bought a group of six southern white rhinos as a move to bring back these second largest land animals.
These rhinos, bred at Ziwa, were introduced from Disney’s Animal Kingdom in the USA and Solio Ranch in Kenya. This marked the species’ return to Uganda after almost 30 years. Today, Uganda boasts 45 rhinos with 43 at Ziwa Sanctuary and two at the Uganda Wildlife Conservation Education Centre.
Since Ajai had previously been a rhino home, the government started plans to revamp it, beginning by introducing other wild animals. So far, UWA recently translocated 200 kobs from Kabwoya Wildlife Reserve in Kikuube District and 50 African buffaloes from Murchison Falls National Park to help clear tall grasses.
UGX 1.7 Billion Required Per Sanctuary
According to the National Rhino Conservation and Management Strategy for Uganda (2018–2028), rhino conservation is expensive and without adequate funding, implementation becomes difficult.
“There are significant costs associated with reintroducing and re-establishing rhinos, such as boma construction, fencing, roads and other infrastructure, staff training and remuneration, translocations, capture, and strategic interventions, in addition to recurrent costs associated with successful monitoring, protection, and management of rhinos likely to be around UGX 1.7 billion ($500,000) per sanctuary per year,” the strategy indicates.
It therefore calls for identifying revenue sources from internal (government) and external sources such as local and international NGOs, the private sector, or fundraising opportunities.
In September 2024, Uganda launched the “Name a Rhino” conservation campaign, targeting to generate at least USD 11 billion in funds.
“‘Name a Rhino’ has not happened yet. That was a media launch to tell the world that we’re going to have it this year (2025) in August,” Bashir Hangi, the UWA communication manager, told GNNA.
Rhinos Require Unique Protection
After translocating kobs and buffaloes to prepare AWR for rhinos, UWA is now constructing a sanctuary. Hangi said while rhinos will be translocated to Ajai before the end of this year, they require different care compared to other species.
“Poachers like their rhino horns because they are very expensive. If we don’t protect them, we shall lose them. We have to ensure specialized protection and veterinary care”.
“With only 45 veterinary officers in the country, the target is to have more trained, as Uganda is destined to become a rhino country,” Hangi explained.
Rhinos as Cultural Heritage of Madi
When the government announced the translocation of rhinos from Ziwa to their former habitat in Ajai in 2023, it was met with mixed reactions, especially due to the plan to expand the protected area from 166 sq km by an additional 26.58 sq km.
However, through robust community engagement involving district leaders, opinion leaders, and UWA, the core disagreements were resolved, and compensation plans were drawn for those affected by the new boundaries.
Zahara Knight, the Madi-Okollo District Tourism Officer, said land mapping was completed, and about 22 families totaling 300 people will be compensated with approximately UGX 2.5 billion.
“The community living in the reserve is surely ready to leave. It is UWA that is delaying compensation. They are eager to vacate and pave way for what they see as their cultural heritage lost for over 40 years,” Zahara noted.
The compensation is targeting the Degia community, comprising the Pamoli and Aliba clans, supplementing earlier payouts to the Madali community.
Ismail Drabe, the district chairperson, commended UWA for using the right channels working through the district council to resolve emerging tensions. Drabe is sure that once the rhinos are translocated, his community will benefit a lot.
Harnessing a Community-Based Approach
Using the Asset-Based Community Development approach, UWA and its partners trained local residents in the conservation strategy by utilizing available community resources.
“The approach UWA is using is community-centered. The rhinos require a lot of care like for human babies. They will guide them day and night. So when the communities are involved, they will own the rhinos,” Zahara said.
It is anticipated that the 50 youth trained will act as informants to UWA rangers in case the animals stray in the community. In addition, the group led by Timothy Arionzi Bileni divided into three groups has already started sensitizing the locals on the benefits of tourism.
Developing Community Tourism Packages
With expectations rising, communities are now working with the district to develop tourism packages and tap into this new livelihood opportunity.
The packages include local cultural performances, traditional dishes, home visits, and a Chief Ajai tourist cemetery trail. Recently, the community received about 300 student tourists who paid local groups for their services.
Ben Afidra Amorimvampi, a 70-year-old elder living near the reserve, has become a local tourist guide. His land is about 200 meters from the UWA boundary mark stone.
Afidra, who hosted the 300 tourism students from Makerere University’s Department of Tourism, is optimistic of reaping more next year after being promised to receive a much higher volume of students from the same institution.
“Last year, I received about 82 tour guides. I was assigned by the district tourism officer to receive them in a traditional way. Ajai used to have 60 types of local food which I prepared them,” said the former primary teacher.
A UWA study on wildlife populations in AWR between August 2015 and May 2020 shows significant growth in species like vervet monkeys increasing from 8 to 70 and warthogs from 24 to 91, among others as shown in the graph below.
Locals Request Access Rights
Alongside tourism, community members want to maintain access to the reserve and its traditional routes.
Bileni, head of the community scouts, told GNNA that locals want free entry to view animals and access markets at Rhino Camp and Pawor, as well as visit relatives.
Arionzi, 34, and now a community vigilante, said the planned fencing of the park is being misunderstood as a total restriction on human access.