EU NaturAfrica project advances Kidepo conservation and tourism
The EU NaturAfrica Kidepo–Turkana Landscape Project has rolled out new measures in and around Uganda’s Kidepo Valley National Park to address human–wildlife conflict and strengthen community conservancies. The launch included the handover of a Joint Operations Command Centre at the Kidepo Valley Conservation Area headquarters to integrate communications and operations, alongside six motorcycles for the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA), NFA and the Morungole Community Conservancy to support field monitoring.
A new Rhino Sanctuary has been unveiled to prepare for the reintroduction of Southern and Eastern Black Rhinos – absent from Kidepo since 1982 – which is expected to enhance the park’s tourism appeal. Northern Rangelands Trust, the project lead, is working with UWA, NFA, Uganda Conservation Foundation, Kenya Wildlife Research & Training Institute and the Morungole community. Project leaders signalled that empowered conservancies can improve livelihoods and conservation, with ambitions to breed up to 100 rhinos within 20 years.
Source: Uganda Wildlife Authority