Politics and the enforcement of the Uganda Forestry Policy 2001: lessons from South Busoga central Forest Reserve, Mayuge district, Eastern Uganda.

Abstract

The competitiveness of multiparty political dispensation in the developing world has led well placed politicians to dish out open access natural resources in exchange for votes. This therefore has brewed conflict between the legislative and executive arms of government in the management of natural resources in these countries including Uganda uganda Subject Category: Geographic Entities see more details. A total of 344 households, 76 local politicians inclusive and 31 environment conservationists with interest at South Busoga Central Forest Reserve (SBCFR), Mayuge district studied showed that; there was a high/strong relationship between the politicians' interference with enforcement of Forestry Policy at SBCFR at r= 0.74 at a 0.05 level of significance; the politicians from the communities engulfing SBCFR did not maximally endeavour to either protect or make strategies which could conserve the forest reserve in their proximity hence, the immense non-compliance with the Forestry Policy manifested by illegalities in SBCFR, Mayuge district and there was a conflict between NFA and politicians over management of SBCFR. It was therefore recommended that a positive political will was necessary so as to avert truncation of government regulatory mechanism with a prevalence of the 1995 Constitution of the Republic of Uganda, incase of any misnomers.