Compliance and Enforcement of Environmental Policies on Natural Resources in Uganda: A case of South Busoga Forest Reserve

Abstract

Environmental policies on natural resources are as old as the history of man-kind, thus it is common to find an array of policies in the environmental docket in most countries. Despite the myriad of policies made and promulgated by most counties, de-legitimisation of the policies on natural resources exists manifested in non-compliance with any of them and their ineffective enforcement in developing countries with a bearing on the new competitive political dispensation amongst these countries, Uganda inclusively. The natural resources have been dished out as handouts hence their petering out, hither to government forest reserves inclusively. This study was out to:-investigate the relationship between government regulatory system and local communities' compliance with the Uganda Forestry Policy (UFP) 2001 in South Busoga Central Forest Reserve (SBCFR); explain the role of politicians with enforcement of the UFP 2001 in SBCFR; and establish the community attitude and willingness of the community living adjacent to SBCFR to comply with the UFP 200 l.This was a case study using cross-sectional survey describing existing phenomena with respect to the following variables, compliance, enforcement and political interference with the first two variables. It adopted a QUAL-quan triangulation model given the objectives. The target local community population was 7341 households where 364 households formed the sample size. A total of 344 local community respondents, thus a precision of ± 5% at a 95% level of confidence participated from the sampled households and 31 conservationists forming the government regulatory system participated. The instruments used were piloted and using a split-half testing for reliability where a coefficient of 0.83 was attained. Document analysis, observations and interviews were transcribed in the text before analysis and interpretations. The research revealed that there was a moderate correlation between government regulatory system and the local community's compliance with the UFP 2001 at r = 0.42.The chi statistic values showed that none of the elements of the government regulatory system was <9.21 at 0.01 df = 2 thus statistically insignificant. It was also found that the elements of government regulatory system were not properly coordinated despite being loosely under NEMA. The SWOT analysis showed that strengths were higher than weakness; where insufficient power and corruption usurped the strengths of NFA in its enforcement. It was also found that local politicians usurped both the powers and authority of NFA in either enforcement of UFP 2001, hence, rendering NFA Officials incompetent. There was a strong relationship at r = 0.74 between the politicians' interference and enforcement of forestry policy at SBCFR. The local communities were positive towards compliance at Likert Scale rate 360 willing to stop, 305 very much willing to comply with the policy, while 320 some what willing. De-legitimization of forestry policy had a strong bearing on political will to either comply with or-enforce it. This has openly led to encroachment of the forest reserves. To avoid de-legitimization of the UFP 2001, there is a need to have a positive political will. The Lead Agencies in the environment docket should be have internal checks and be assertive in management. The policy should be reviewed to include politicians' role. Agro-forestry strategy skewed towards soil fertilization would detach the local community from the forest reserve.