Protecting Wetlands: RCMRD and Digital Earth Africa Champion Sustainable Management in Kenya and Uganda

The Regional Centre for Mapping of Resources for Development (RCMRD) recently conducted wetland assessments in Kenya and Uganda, underscoring the need for ongoing monitoring to combat the accelerating degradation of these ecosystems. Wetlands play a pivotal role in water purification, flood risk reduction, and habitat provision. Despite their importance, these ecosystems face increasing threats from human activity, agriculture, and climate change.

In partnership with the National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA) in both Kenya and Uganda, RCMRD spearheaded a wetland monitoring assessment. Leveraging Digital Earth Africa’s tools and resources, the project aimed to enhance innovation, gather data, and provide actionable insights for sustainable wetland management.

A newly developed modular toolkit for wetland inventory and monitoring was piloted, drawing on Digital Earth Africa’s continental-scale products and services. Key activities included: 
• Creating wetland inventory maps using Digital Earth Africa’s Sandbox platform.
• Developing a data capture tool via Esri ArcGIS Survey123 for detailed field data collection.
 • Conducting stakeholder interviews to capture community perspectives, including gender-related insights. 

Through the fieldwork exercise, RCMRD observed various economic activities around wetlands, such as small-scale and commercial farming, fishing, tourism, and mining. While these activities sustain livelihoods, they also contribute to wetland degradation through pollution, encroachment, and habitat loss. For instance, car washing in Uganda introduces harmful pollutants, and shared water sources with livestock can spread diseases. Wetland encroachment often leads to conflicts over land use and ownership, emphasizing the need for clear boundary demarcations. In Uganda, for example, field validation is required to supplement NEMA’s Wetland Gazette, which lacks comprehensive information on smaller wetlands. The project identified key opportunities for sustainable wetland management in Kenya and Uganda:

1. Leveraging Digital Earth Africa’s Tools: Encouraging stakeholders to adopt data-driven tools for informed decision-making.

2. Government and Community Engagement: Collaborating with governments and community-based organizations to integrate wetland conservation into development plans.

3. Empowering Women: Initiatives to train women in wetland monitoring using user-friendly digital tools align with government priorities, particularly in Uganda.