Natural Resources

The Natural Resources department is one of the departments in all Local Government in Uganda. It was created around 2002 and is headed by the District Natural Resource Officer and its main objectives of the department are:
– To promote and ensure sustainable natural resource use and management. The natural resources include land, water/wetlands, savannah woodland and plantation, and forest in specific reserves.
– To guide the utilization of all the natural resources in the district
The department is consisted of the following sub-sectors:
– Environment and Wetlands sub-sector
– Land Management Sector (Survey, physical planning, cartography, valuation, registration of titles)
– Forestry sub-sector

Staffing
The department has the following established positions and their staffing position is as indicated in the table below

No Position Staffing status
1 Natural Resources Officer Vacant
2 Senior Environment Officer Filled
3 Senior Forestry Officer Filled
4 Senior Lands Management Officer Filled
5 Environment/Wetlands Officer Filled
6 Staff surveyor Filled
7 Physical Planner Vacant
8 cartographer Filled
9 Land Valuer Vacant
10 Registrar of Titles Vacant
11 Forestry Officer Vacant
12 Assistant Records Officer Filled
13 Stenographer secretary Filled

POCC Analysis
Potential
– The district is well endowed with land, wetlands, fertile soils and savannah woodlands.
– The district leadership is committed to developing and managing all its natural resources.
– There are staffs recruited to plan for and manage the Districts Natural Resources.
– Communities are willing to cooperate in the use and management of natural resources.
– Central government is willing to develop policies and give technical support for sustainable use and management of natural resources.
– Civil society organization is willing to work hand in hand with government, communities and all other stakeholders in the use and management of natural resources.
– The UN- Millennium development goal number seven focus solely on ensuring environmental sustainability.

Opportunities
– NGOs and CBOs are willing to embark on projects that will protect and ensure sustainable management of natural resources.
– Political leaders are committed to the development and management of natural resources because of the critical role natural resources play in fighting poverty.
– Government is willing to fund projects that integrate issues of environmental sustainability.
– The district council is committed to enacting Ordinances that will further sustainable natural resources use and conservation.

Challenges
– Ignorance about the importance and values of our natural resources by the local communities.
– Conflicting sectoral policies which negatively affects use and management of natural resources.
– Inadequate funds to initiate development projects which would enhance the quality of natural resources, by way of ecosystem restoration and Management to reduce poverty.
– At present, most NGOs, CBOs and government programmes are not geared towards protection of natural resources

Constraints
– Increase in population in urban areas has increased exploitation and demand for natural resources and associated products and services.
– The looming level of poverty has increased dependency on natural resources use leading to degradation and depletion of some of the natural resources stock.
– Agro-processing industrial development in the district is accelerating environmental degradation as farmers clear more land in order to increase acreage for agricultural production in order to produce more raw materials for the industries.
– Poor farming practices and lack of maintenance of soil fertility is accelerating environmental degradation.