Four years ago, Tusk and Ripple Effect (formerly Send a Cow) launched the Living with Wildlife appeal to help people and wildlife live side by side in and around Murchison Falls National Park (MFNP), Uganda. The appeal ran for three months, and thanks to the generosity of Tusk and Ripple Effect’s supporters, it significantly exceeded its original fundraising target: £1.3million was raised overall, which was generously matched by the UK government.

The funds were used to ensure that 37,300 people now have improved food security, increased livelihood opportunities, and more positive relations with the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA). This impact became more important than ever in supporting the park and local communities through some very difficult times over the past few years.

Towards the end of the appeal, the Covid pandemic struck. Tourism to Murchison Falls collapsed as restrictions to control the spread of the virus were introduced. Without tourism, no revenue is generated to pay rangers or to support the protection of the park: the 20% of tourism income that the Uganda Wildlife Authority invests in the community evaporated, and the only vibrant economy folded in an area where unemployment was already rife. As feared, the hunting and trapping of wildlife began to soar, along with the collection of natural resources such as firewood, as people tried to make ends meet.

The challenges presented by Covid were added to as the River Nile flooded to levels higher than in recorded history. The floods displaced thousands of fishermen and farmers living along the banks of the Nile and the shores of Lake Albert, many of whom resorted to poaching as an alternative. Hippos that normally frequent the shallow areas and sandy beaches were meanwhile pushed into community areas, feeding on crops and putting villagers in great danger. The Living with Wildlife project’s role in supporting and promoting human-wildlife co-existence therefore became greater than ever.

PACE interaction in Puvungu Parents Primary School.

Through Tusk’s partnership with the Uganda Conservation Foundation (UCF), and through Tusk’s PACE programme, 13,693 people were educated on the importance of the national park, wildlife and protecting endangered species such as the Rothschild’s giraffe (for which the park is one of their greatest strongholds). The PACE engagement programme reached both Primary and Secondary School children from forty different schools, helping to build the next generation of conservationists. This was reinforced by incredibly meaningful trips into the national park, which were conducted for 350 schoolchildren and 510 community members. For many, this was the first time that they had been able to experience the park in this way and to develop a greater appreciation of its wildlife.  The visit to the armory further underpinned this importance, as rangers demonstrated the huge number of traps and snares they have removed during their patrols.

Meanwhile, 120 young people received vocational training in trades that were specifically chosen to meet local demand and offer immediate employment opportunities and a steady income without turning to the park’s natural resources; 78% found jobs after their training ended.

While poaching didn’t decrease as expected, because of the extra challenges, all the above interventions have brought the park and community closer together, and will help reduce pressure on the park in the long-term while supporting the local community through an extremely vulnerable moment in time.

“The Living with Wildlife project has broken boundaries for the community living next to the park to stop thinking that the park is for foreigners and given an opportunity for them to appreciate the beauty of wildlife. The project has transformed the lives of what would be poachers to wildlife protectors through livelihood supported projects.” Wilson Kagoro, Community Conservation Warden, Murchison Falls National Park