Queen Elizabeth National Park is under threat from an influx of cattle belonging to Basongora pastoralists who were send back home from the DR Congo recently.
The former State Minister for Lands, Baguma Isoke, a member of the ministerial team that went to assess the situation, said the animals had overgrazed the pelican peninsula near Lake Edward. Mondo Kagonyera, the former Minister in charge of General duties in the Prime Minister’s office, headed the team.

He said there was dread that the wild animals were exposed to catching infectious diseases from the cattle. In Lake Mburo National Park, the lions were driven into extermination because of the importunate conflict between the herdsmen and wildlife authorities over lions in the last decade.

Arthur Kule Musinguzi, the district environment officer, Kasese district, said the “returnees” had camped outside the park on public land pending a solution to their plight. But they grazed inside the park. Moses Mapesa, the head of Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA), said an inter-ministerial committee had ruled that the Basongora should be relocated to Ibuga refuge settlement camp.

He said settlement in the park was a provisional measure awaiting relocation.

Mapesa said the Minister of Trade, Tourism and Industry, Daudi Migereko, would advise the inter-ministerial committee after his visit to the area. Kule said the Basongola are linked to cattle-keeping tribes in Uganda and that they took advantage of the weak laws in DR Congo to settle in Virunga National park. Kule said the government of Congo is securing its protected areas. It started throwing out encroachers recently Queen Elizabeth is the oldest park in the country and is famous for its diversity and density of large animals.

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