Sport Hunting to Save Nature? The Case of Uganda

Amos Ochieng,Renévan Der Duim,Ingridj Visseren-Hamakers

doi:10.4103/cs.cs_19_41

Amos Ochieng, Renévan Der Duim + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.4103/cs.cs_19_41

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Abstract

After having banned sport hunting in 1979, Uganda reintroduced it in 2001 around Lake Mburo National Park, and in 2006 in the Kabwoya and Kaiso-Tonya Game Management Area, with the aim to reduce human-wildlife conflicts, especially poaching, by providing incentives for the local inhabitants in order to positively change residents' attitudes towards wildlife. We conducted interviews and reviewed documents to analyse and evaluate the impacts of reintroduction of sport hunting. The income generated from sport hunting was used to provide social services and implement social development projects. There was no proof of hunting income being used for conservation purposes. Although the local perceptions of the sport hunting benefits varied, the benefits did initially help to improve local residents' attitudes towards wildlife and poaching temporarily stopped—but resumed later. Hence, this study shows that the common underlying assumption of sport hunting policies and other market- and community-based approaches to conservation—that when local residents receive benefits, they will appreciate wildlife—is debatable.

Highlights

Hunting as a sport in Africa dates back to the 1800s, following the arrival of early explorer-hunters on the continent (Ochieng 2019)
We focus on poaching by the local residents as a form of humanwildlife conflicts, since this is what the Ugandan government meant by Human-wildlife conflicts (HWC) in its sport hunting policy
Our analysis focuses on benefit sharing, as the Ugandan government uses it in the hope to reduce HWC, we analyse how these benefits translate into improved wellbeing for the local residents

Summary

Introduction

Hunting as a sport in Africa dates back to the 1800s, following the arrival of early explorer-hunters on the continent (Ochieng 2019). It is implemented following market-based (McAfee 1999) and community-based (Hulme and Murphree 2001) conservation policies. Kenya ( still maintaining hunting for birds) and Botswana ( reintroducing it again), banned sport hunting and are promoting photography tourism as a source of income for local communities (Muposhi et al 2016)

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