The National Environment Management Authority (Nema) recently evicted encroachers from Lubigi Wetland in Kawaala, Rubaga Division, in Kampala.
Several houses and makeshift structures constructed in the severely degraded wetland were demolished by a Nema enforcement team in conjunction with the police. The operation conducted at Kawaala is part of an ongoing nationwide crackdown on wetland encroachers.
According to Nema, the countrywide operations are aimed at restoring degraded wetlands to enable them to perform their duties, such as flood control, water filtration, and climate regulation, among others.
Across the country, vast tracts of wetlands have been encroached on and degraded by farmers, brick makers, and people who have built residential and commercial houses in them.
Wetlands are also threatened by pollutants that some irresponsible proprietors and employees of factories release into them. Even though some progress has been made in the war against environmental degradation, much more still needs to be done.
A key issue that must be expeditiously resolved is the complaints about selective eviction of encroachers.
Previous operations conducted by Nema were marred by claims that some wealthy, powerful, and well-connected individuals were left to live in and conduct illegal activities in wetlands, even as other people were evicted. There should be no cases of selective eviction. Everyone must be treated equally.
To ensure wetlands are protected against degradation, we call upon the government to step up sensitisation of the populace about their importance to the ecosystem.
The populace must be made aware that destruction of wetlands is an existential threat to not only humans, but also animals, insects, and plants. It is imperative that the authorities provide alternative sources of livelihood for those who previously earned a living from doing destructive activities on wetlands.
This will prevent them from returning to the wetlands where they were evicted, as has happened before. A case in point is Nyombe Wetland, where farmers, who had previously been evicted and the wetland restored, returned in 2025, claiming that the government had reneged on its promise of providing them alternative sources of livelihood.
We also call upon Nema enforcers and the police officers who accompany them to be humane while handling the encroachers.
The authorities should also consider giving those who have cultivated crops in wetlands a grace period to harvest them.