Researchers from Makerere University School of Public Health (Mak-SPH) have launched a four-year study to assess the impact of government interventions on wetlands restoration and management.
The study, dubbed “Win-Win in the Wetlands for Climate Resilience: Consolidating and Scaling Health, Social, and Economic Impacts of Wetlands Conservation and Restoration in rural as well as urban Uganda,” aims to evaluate the Building Resilience Communities Project, implemented by the government since 2017.
Speaking at the project launch, Dr. Rawlance Ndeijjo, Principal Investigator and lecturer at Mak-SPH, said the study is intended to inform policy and guide on the good practices required to ensure that wetland restoration benefits the masses.
“We have seen projects that are implemented to restore and conserve wetlands, but many times we don’t go ahead to try to evaluate the health impact of those projects. So our proposition in this project is to look at the project which the government has been implementing since 2017, and that is the Building Resilience Communities Project,” he said.
Dr. Ndeijjo added, “We want to try and document the health impact of this project, in addition to the social and economic impact, and also be able to come out with clear evidence on the contribution of this project to climate mitigation, how much these wetlands absorb carbon, we want to look at this as a holistic picture.”
The study will focus on four thematic areas, including: measuring climate, health, social, and economic outcomes of wetland restoration across Uganda; co-designing, piloting, and evaluating evidence-based interventions for urban conservation; training district and city teams to implement and sustain effective conservation actions; and updating national frameworks and strategies to support long-term, community-centered wetland protection.
“We want to see how we can advance the understanding of the benefit of climate mitigation strategies, beyond just their contribution to the environment,” said Dr. John Bosco Isunju, Project co-investigator.
Mr. Deo Kabaalu, the Principal Wetlands Officer at the Ministry of Water and Environment, said the study is timely and will guide the government on the implementation of similar projects aimed at restoring the wetlands to at least 3,900 hectares.
The project will assess the impact of wetland restoration in rural and urban areas, including the effects on diarrhea cases, bilharzia, and mental health.
“We shall learn from implementing this project and want the local person to see the value of wetland restoration, that’s why we shall go to the communities and see the number of children under five who have had diarrhea within the past two weeks to compare the areas that have been restored and those that haven’t. We shall also look at aspects like bilharzia, and mental health and well-being,” Dr. Ndeijjo said.