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How can tourism develop Uganda? Podcast interview

How can tourism help Uganda achieve a middle-class economy? ON Uganda podcast interview

Regular Diary of a Muzungu readers know how much conservation, Uganda travel and digital marketing rock my boat so I was honoured when podcast host Aggie Patricia Turwomwe invited me to chat about these subjects and more. The interview gave me a chance to mention some of my favourite organisations: Conservation Through Public Health, Uganda Wildlife Authority and the brilliant free hospitality and tourism training app from the Ukarimu Academy. Oh yes, and my favourite new glitzy Kampala café, Cafesserie Arena Mall!

“Word-of-mouth has morphed into Digital Marketing” podcast interview with Charlotte Beauvoisin

ON Uganda Podcast – UG’s investment podcast – is dedicated 100% to demystify paradigms through its three segments; On Reports, On Sectors, and On Marketing with an aim to become a tool to help Ugandans achieve and thrive in a booming “MIDDLE-CLASS ECONOMY.” Listen along to understand what fuels the wheels of our economy!

Charlotte ‘Nagawa’ Beauvoisin is a writer and trainer that delivers agile and scalable experiences with digital across East Africa. Nagawa writes the award-winning blog Diary of a Muzungu and has contributed to the Bradt Uganda Guidebook, Lonely Planet, Fodor’s Travel, The Daily Telegraph and Horizon Guides.

In this 36 minute podcast interview, recorded in December 2021 in Kampala, Charlotte takes us through:

PODCAST DISCLAIMER from ON Uganda. The views and opinions expressed in the episode are those of the guests. They do not represent or reflect the official position of the ON Uganda Podcast, so we do not take responsibility for any ideas expressed by guest during the Podcast. You are smart enough, take out what works for you.

Listen to this episode on Google Podcasts / Anchor / Apple

Do you enjoy listening to podcasts?
Do you like the English accent? 😆 I’d love to know which podcasts you follow – seriously.

Interview with UK’s woman & home magazine

The power of volunteering: an interview about life as a conservation volunteer in Uganda

Once upon a lifetime ago, I left my 9-5 job in London to volunteer with the Uganda Conservation Foundation. Volunteering with VSO (Voluntary Service Overseas) was the passport to an incredible life. It’s a story I’ve been blogging about ever since…

I’m thrilled that an interview about my life in Uganda featured in the UK’s woman & home magazine (October 2021) and Woman Magazine (July 2022).

“Approaching Entebbe Airport, bright orange sunshine filled the plane. I felt like the sun was rising over Africa and my new life. I was a little nervous and very excited.

In London, I had a corporate job and a long-term relationship, but the end of the relationship reignited my dream of visiting Africa.

I didn’t know anything about Uganda beyond Idi Amin, Lake Victoria and mountain gorillas, but I had a feeling I might stay longer than my two-year placement …”

Charlotte Beauvoisin, Woman Magazine | woman & home magazine
Woman Magazine UK July 2022. Charlotte Beauvoisin interview VSO Uganda
Woman Magazine UK July 2022. Charlotte Beauvoisin interview about the life-changing experience of being a VSO in Uganda

Read the woman & home interview with Charlotte in Uganda here.

The warmth here in Uganda – like the people – envelops you in a hug and makes you want to stay forever…

Charlotte Beauvoisin, woman & home magazine, October 2021
No that is not me on the magazine cover! (Eh! you think all bazungu look alike?)
woman&home is on sale in UK shops or online

Do you enjoy reading Interviews? Read more Interviews with Charlotte Beauvoisin here.

Billing and cooing around Lake Saka, Fort Portal

Pelicans and Great-crested Grebes – monitoring birds at Lake Saka on behalf of NatureUganda

Billing and cooing around Lake Saka – or “more birdwatching with Rog!”

The sight of four Sacred Ibis flying overhead is “a good sign” according to Roger, as we drive down the dusty back roads of Fort Portal towards Lake Saka. “I’m surprised to see them here,” he says. A minute later two Grey Crowned Cranes follow their route. The road to Mountains of the Moon University is so dusty a boda boda drive towards us with a face mask on.

Roger is anxious about what birdlife we’ll see or more correctly what we won’t see at Lake Saka. When he lived in Fort Portal he walked around this lake four times a week. He is concerned at what damage may been done in the year since his visit. Roger is prepared to be disappointed.

We park at the university and within minutes Roger’s face lights up as he hears the sound of a Red-winged Francolin. “I didn’t think they’d still be here!” He says. “There were three pairs here before. It’s the only place I’ve seen them in Uganda.”

At an elevation of 1,576 metres, we are around 400 metre higher than our forest edge home and this is reflected in the different bird species.

Our group of guides and casual birders sets to work following the transects designated for the NatureUganda bird population monitoring. “There’s no time for birdwatching, we have to focus on the transects,” orders Roger. “We can dilly dally later, on our walk back.”

Julia takes notes and Dillon (aged 8 1/2) watches the clock for us.

I spy a Red-eyed Dove on the overhead wire.

“Palm nut Vulture!” Calls Ambrose.

“A Windchat – a migrant.”

A Pink-backed Pelican sits on the surface of the lake. “This is fabulous!” Exclaims Rog.

“African Fish Eagle in the distance” calls Ambrose.

Roger points out the African Stonechat. What a pretty pair of birds they are. The female is quite different to the male and has a reddish pink breast.

Sightings come quickly. There’s no time to watch the birds, only to record them and march on. A small flock of Black and White Manikins sit on bleached ears of maize.

“Chubb’s Cisticola” someone shouts – and a pause to check its ID in Fanshawe’s “Birds of East Africa.”

The striking Baglefecht’s Weaver poses in Erthrynia.

“Ants!” Shouts Dianah. We step over a trail of red (biting) ants across our path.

We walk down a quiet marram path that slopes gently downhill. We’ve been walking for twenty minutes and only passed two of three other people. There are no cars, no boda bodas. All we can hear are the sounds of nature.

In the distance are the misty foothills of the Rwenzori Mountains. A speck of white passes high in the sky, lit by the sun. “Little Egret,” calls Roger.

A Cinnamon-chested Bee eater perches on a branch above our heads.

“Ah BEAUTIFUL… !” Everyone coos at the same time.

“Charlotte – take a photo!”

“There’s no time for birdwatching” Julia shouts sarcastically, mimicking Roger, pushing us on.

There is the sound of running water and the air cools as we cross a small stream. Above it is a large messy Hammerkop nest in the crook of a tree. A man washes his boda boda in the flowing water.

“Isn’t there a law against that?” Muses Roger loudly as we file past the naughty boda driver.

We climb a long slope that opens high above the lake. “African Open-billed Stork!” Ambrose shouts. (I love those prehistoric-looking birds).

A lone cow bellows loudly.

We see another six African Open-billed Storks, then three more. Close by, eleven Bronze Manikins fly through the tall grass. In this lovely unspoiled piece of countryside there are few houses.

“We haven’t found a Grebe yet,” Roger. Despite some good bird sightings, his anxiety persists.

As we wander along the path, the team calls out bird names:

Two Northern Black Flycatchers… Short-winged Cisticola… Yellow-throated Longclaw… Eight Pink-backed Pelicans. “This is brilliant, there only used to be one!” Cries Rog.

Lavaillant's Cuckoo. Lake Saka, Saaka, Fort Portal. Bird watching
Lavaillant’s Cuckoo. Lake Saka, Saaka, Fort Portal. Bird watching

I get a close-up shot of a Lavaillant’s Cuckoo in an avocado tree next to the path.

We hear the plaintive sound of cranes in the distance over the lake. A Variable Sunbird perches on the tip of a matooke leaf. “Pretty!” Says Dianah.

Eastern Grey Plantain eater… two Palm Swifts in flight…

“New section guys!” Shouts Julia every few minutes, as she records all the data.

Roger points to a ridge of the Rwenzori Mountains. “I’ve seen Angola Colobus up there,” he says.

I point to a Little Brown Bird. I know what it isn’t but I don’t know what it is. I have a feeling we haven’t counted it yet. “It’s a Tawny-flanked Prinia,” he corrects me, “a type of warbler.”

On Lake Kigere, we see four Yellow-billed ducks and – finally – two Great-crested Grebes!

This is the first in a series of blogs about the NatureUganda bird population monitoring of Kibale Conservation Area, which is carried out twice-yearly by a team from Sunbird Hill. The Kibale Conservation Area comprises Toro Semliki Wildlife Reserve, Semliki National Park, Kibale National Park (Sebitoli, Ngogo Road Kanyanchu, Mainara, Kanyawara), Lake Saka and Lake Bikere and Toro Botanical Gardens in Fort Portal and Katonga Wildlife Reserve.

Our friend Roger Skeen takes centre stage in many of my birding blogs. Here are a few favourites:

A birding safari here in my backyard. Traversing the swamp from Kampala en route to Port Bell

Operation Shoebill – Uganda’s Big Birding Day Mabamba Bay

A disgusting day out – counting vultures in Kampala’s abattoirs

Where shall we go birding next?

Operation Shoebill: Uganda’s Big Birding Day 24-hour race

Operation Shoebill: first-hand experience of Uganda’s Big Birding Day annual 24 hour bird race at Mabamba Bay

So why precisely have I got up well before dawn – on a Saturday – to drive for three hours in a cramped minibus to sit in an old boat?

Shoebill Stork in flight. PHOTO Ronan Donovan and Wild Frontiers Uganda www.wildfrontiers.co.ug
Reason enough to get up very early indeed on a Saturday – what a bird: the Shoebill. Big Birding Day Uganda. PHOTO Ronan Donovan and Wild Frontiers Uganda www.wildfrontiers.co.ug

It’s that time of year again: Uganda’s annual Big Birding Day, a 24-hour contest in which birders compete to see who can rack up the score for the highest number of bird species. The early bird catches the worm… or so they say. (This silly early bird didn’t even remember to catch breakfast, and now I’m sitting hungry in the middle of a huge swamp, miles from anywhere … oh damn you and your insatiable Muzungu appetite for cappuccino…)

On the shores of Lake Victoria about 50 km west of Kampala lie the vast swamps of Mabamba, one of Uganda’s few remaining swamps that are protected by the local communities.

Classified as an Important Bird Area, Mabamba Bay is home to Uganda’s most famous bird: the iconic Shoebill.

Mabamba Bay Swamp boat. Uganda’s Big Birding Day
Operation Shoebill: first-hand experience of Uganda’s Big Birding Day 24 hour race at Mabamba Bay. PHOTO Charlotte Beauvoisin

Would our Big Birding Day team get lucky and see a Shoebill at Mabamba Bay?

A couple of rickety-looking boats greet us on the edge of Mabamba Swamp. With giggles of excitement, the team’s boats head off into the Papyrus.

Pair of Grey Crowned Cranes. Big Birding Day. PHOTO Kaj Ostergaard
Pair of Grey Crowned Cranes. Uganda’s Big Birding Day 24 hour race

A pair of Grey Crowned Cranes (referred to locally in Uganda as Crested Cranes) fly overhead. It’s like a statement:  you have officially landed in Uganda’s wetlands. The fabulous Crested Crane adorns Uganda’s national coat of arms and makes its home in the wetlands (or what is left of them).

Our boats are surrounded by vibrant green, dotted with shimmering, purple water lilies, the cool morning mist rising from the crystal-clear waters.

A vibrant blue and orange Malachite Kingfisher poses delicately on a Papyrus stem as our boat pushes through the vegetation.

I spot a Northern Brown-throated Weaver (pale brown with an orange beak) at the base of some reeds. (I can’t say I know exactly what it is, but I’m the first to spot it! You don’t need to be an expert to take part in Big Birding Day; just quickly point out the moving blocks of colour to your more knowledgeable teammates).

The narrow waterways cutting through the swamp allow one, maximum two, narrow boats to pass. Travelling in a low-lying boat means you are at eye-level with so many of the birds at the water’s edge. It’s magic.

Purple Waterlillies. Big Birding Day. PHOTO Kaj Ostergaard
Purple Waterlillies contrast beautifully with the abundant lush greenery of the swamp. Uganda’s Big Birding Day. PHOTO Kaj Ostergaard

The narrow labyrinth of channels opens out into a wide freshwater lagoon.

We spot a Yellow-billed Duck in flight, a Squacco Heron amongst the reeds, and several Long-toed Lapwings, just a number of the iconic wetland birds you can see at Mabamba.

As our Shoebill comes into sight, everyone in the boat stands up (precariously tipping the boat to one side of course!)

Shoebill Stork, Mabamba Swamp. Big Birding Day. PHOTO Nick Sausen
Shoebill Stork, Mabamba Swamp. Big Birding Day. PHOTO Nick Sausen

The dark grey, funny-looking character stands an impressive five feet tall and stares back at us. A cross between a Stork and a Pelican, this prehistoric-looking bird dines on a menu of lungfish and frogs. Oh yum! (Mabamba is one of many places in Uganda you can see the Shoebill, but arguably the most accessible since it’s a short hop from Entebbe or Kampala. The excellent, mid-range Nkima Forest Lodge is just a few minutes from Mabamba Bay).

A pair of magnificent Blue-breasted Bee-eaters entertain us, while the Shoebill looks on, seriously, just ten or so metres from our boat. The Shoebill moves his head from side to side as our Mabamba guide educates us about this fascinating bird. There are just two or three pairs of Shoebills breeding in Mabamba, all under the watchful eye of the local community.

We look in vain for the Lesser Jacana, to the disappointment of our guide, who has a mental checklist of the birds he has hoped to record for Big Birding Day. Mabamba birds we do spot include Pink-backed Pelican, Saddle-billed Stork, African Fish Eagle, Purple Swamphen, Giant Kingfisher, Swamp Flycatcher and Weynn’s Weaver.

Pied Kingfisher Mabamba Swamp. Big Birding Day.
Pied Kingfisher poses on Papyrus, Mabamba Swamp. Big Birding Day

There is no protection from the sun when you are out on the open water. Cue: return to land, for a soda and a chapatti from the local snack stall. Refreshed, and with the Big Birding Day clock ticking, the competitive streak kicks in and the Big Birding Day team marches uphill towards some tall trees. En route we add a Fan-tailed Widowbird to our list.

Leaving Mabamba is a series of smaller Papyrus Swamps where we see locally occurring ‘endemic species’ such as the striking Papyrus Gonolek, White-winged Warbler and Carruther’s Cisticcola.

Uganda – ‘the birding mecca’ of Africa

Our tiny country is home to over 1000 bird species, almost 50% of Africa’s bird species. In addition to the 1000+ resident species, millions of birds migrate across Ugandan skies en route to summer alternately in South Africa and Europe.

Every year families, conservationists and the tourism industry come together to celebrate Uganda’s Big Birding Day, a series of fun conservation events celebrating birds. Young or old, an amateur or a professional ‘twitcher,’ Big Birding Day has something for everyone.

With a score of 114 species identified by the end of Big Birding Day 2013, our Mabamba team ranked a decent 9th out of 73 teams participating nationwide.

Big Birding Day
Be part of something BIG – Big Birding Day Uganda: a 24 hour birding contest across the country

How can you take part in Big Birding Day?

Expert bird guides from NatureUganda, Uganda Wildlife Authority staff and Uganda Bird Guides Club lead participants in the main event, a 24-hour bird watching contest. Big Birding Day includes free guided nature walks at dozens of sites across Uganda. Uganda Wildlife Authority provide free entry to the country’s National Parks, Wildlife and Forest Reserves on Big Birding Day (provided you register in advance).

Uganda’s Big Birding Day takes place every November. Registration is through Nature Uganda email bbd@natureuganda.org Twitter @NatureUganda and Facebook www.facebook.com/NatureUganda.

I can’t be on the winning Big Birding Day team every year – or can I? 😉

5 Years a Blogger

Five years ago I first set foot in Uganda. (Is that all it’s been?) Thank you to everyone who’s been part of my journey.

I mean THANK YOU. It wouldn’t have been the same without you.

The Muzungu was first sighted in Namuwongo, Kampala. Posing here at my home-cum-office with Patrick, Enid, Simpson and Eva

“For better, for worse” and despite the occasional argument or misunderstanding, my rantings and frustrations, you have helped me pursue my passions for conservation, travel and writing. In different ways, you have helped me ‘live the dream’ and I am immensely grateful for that.

My life in Uganda has stretched me beyond compare, and sometimes I have failed – you or myself – but whoever said it was going to be easy?

NEVER-NEVER-NEVER-Give-Up.-Winston-Churchill
NEVER NEVER NEVER Give Up – Winston Churchill

Thank you for the support. Thank you for the trust.

Thank you for the opportunities. Thank you for the faith.

Thank you for the shoulder to cry on. Thank you for the advice, the criticism and the feedback…

Thank you for reading Diary of a Muzungu.

Thank you for subsidising my volunteer’s allowance!

Thank you for buying my Uganda Souvenir Maps.

Thank you for paying my electricity bill when I got cut off.

Thank you for killing the cockroaches so I don’t have to face my phobia.

My favourite Uganda dog moments
The best friend a girl could have: the Dog with the Waggiest Tail. Coming to Uganda gave me the chance to have my first dog, Baldrick, my parter in crime in many of my blog stories. Here are some of my favourite moments.

Thank you for Baldrick.

THANK YOU for the nights out!

The nights in!

The safaris!

The adventure!

The belly laughs.

Thanks for believing in me.

WEBALE NYO. Neyanziza. [I appreciate]

I love birds! Uganda’s Big Birding Day

Diary of a Muzungu is proud to be a sponsor of Big Birding Day 2013, supporting the next generation of birders in Uganda.

Diary of a Muzungu is delighted to support Big Birding Day (BBD) Uganda

Diary of a Muzungu is delighted to support Big Birding Day (BBD) Uganda

How many birds will you see at Big Birding Day 2013?

Bigger and better than ever, help us beat last years record – 290 birders in 58 teams, birding in 35 areas, recording 657 species (63% of the total species of Uganda recorded and an increase of 82 species from the 2011 record)!

 

The Muzungu with young birder Hope at Kasenge, Uganda. International Day of the Safari Guide

The Muzungu with young birder Hope at Kasenge on International Day of the Safari Guide. Photo courtesy of Titus Kakembo and Uganda Tourism Press Association

This Friday 18th October is the official launch of Big Birding Day 2013 at the Uganda Museum in Kampala.

Charlotte Diary of a Muzungu Big Birding Day 2013

Diary of a Muzungu helped promote Big Birding Day 2013

The free to enter Big Birding Day race is a 24 hour competition this Saturday, 19th October, at dozens of sites across Uganda, involving birdwatching groups competing to score the longest bird species list in 24 hours. Birding teams are led by professionally trained guides and experienced bird guides from NatureUganda membership and UWA staff. Each group must have at least 2 members who are experienced bird watchers to confirm the species identification.

All birds seen and/or heard calling within these sites will be recorded (TICK!) A tally centre will be set up at NatureUganda to receive and check all records.

Each new bird sighting gets a TICK

Each new bird sighting gets a TICK – but no cheating please guys!

 

The Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) and National Forestry Authority (NFA) are offering FREE entry for all Big Birding Day participants birding in National Parks, Wildlife Reserves and Forest Reserves – but you need to register your team first. (Scroll down for the flyer and contacts below).

…And if you can’t make the Big Birding Day race this Saturday, why not join us for the Festival Saturday 26th October? Here NatureUganda will name the Big Birding Day winning teams at Kitante Primary School Gardens (behind the Uganda Museum). This free event is open to the whole family and will be a chance to learn more about birds and birding. There will also be live music, dancing, face painting for the kids and more…

What can you expect from the Big Birding Day 2013 Race?

One year I was lucky enough to tag along with expert birders Roger Skeen and Nathan Eluku who recorded an incredible 175 bird species between Namuwongo, Kampala and Entebbe. What a fantastic day out it was. And the best bit? Our team won!

How to take part in Big Birding Day 2013, Uganda

Diary of a Muzungu is proud to be a sponsor of Uganda’s Big Birding Day 2013, supporting the next generation of birders. Birds, conservation, tourism

 

It’s not all about winning of course… this year I’m excited to be going to Mabamba Swamp, famous for its rare Shoebill Stork. I can’t wait!

Shoebill Stork, Entebbe, Uganda

Shoebill Stork, first seen by the Muzungu (though the mesh of its cage) at UWEC, Entebbe, Uganda

 

If you’re asking yourself, “why exactly does the Muzungu keep banging on about birds?” read “Why we should embrace Uganda’s Big Birding Day.” They delight me and enthrall me.

There’s a serious side to the event too and this year’s theme is: Birding, Our Livelihoods and Our Economy

Birdwatching can present significant economic opportunities for countries through sustainable tourism, says the United Nations environment agency. In Uganda, tourism is the number two foreign exchange earner (second only to remittances from Ugandans living overseas).

Did you know that worldwide, one in eight people earn their living directly or indirectly because of the tourism industry?

You only need to look at Uganda’s gorilla tourism and the way this single species has promoted Uganda internationally and helped fund other tourism initiatives and conservation across the country to see the huge potential for birding to develop Uganda’s economy. The Uganda Wildlife Authority, conservation organisations and tourist lodges work very closely with the community: training and employing local people.

Birding directly employs qualified bird guides and rangers, tour operators and sales consultants. Employment opportunities exist for land owners, farmers and producers who supply lodges, people who maintain tracks and trails, lodge and hotel staff and all the smaller businesses that support these: boda boda drivers, restaurants and shops. Birding tourism or ‘avitourism’ can thus become an economic and political force for both development and conservation.

Birding disproportionately favours the poor, since we find the highest number of bird species in remote areas. Thus, with the right investment in training and tourist facilities, birding can contribute to raising people out of poverty.

By supporting Big Birding Day 2013, the training of the next generation of birders and the investment in tourism infrastructure, you’re helping build the skills and opportunities of individual Ugandans, the economy of Uganda and protecting its wildlife and natural heritage at the same time … and you can have a great day out at the same time!

Please contact NatureUganda on 0414-540719 / 0414-533528 / 0772929626 to find out more, email bbd@natureuganda.org or register via the NatureUganda website.

NatureUganda is a membership-based organisation that would not exist without your support. 

Did you know you can renew your NatureUganda membership by mobile money? Just 5000 UGX for students and 25k UGX for annual family membership. Send to 0777147367

Follow NatureUganda on Twitter and be a Fan of NatureUganda on Facebook

If you like my birding stories, you might enjoy Diary of a Muzungu’ s page dedicated to our feathered friends, Uganda’s birds.

Do you like birds? Are you taking part in Big Birding Day this year? This annual event is growing every year. If you have ideas on how we can help develop BBD, do get in touch!

Be part of something BIG!

The Uganda Kob and the Grey Crested Crane adorn the country's crest

The Uganda Kob and the Grey Crested Crane adorn the country’s crest  – (which bird will replace it in 20 years time when the bird is extinct?)

“Birding@50” focuses on the plight of Uganda’s national symbol, the Grey Crowned Crane.

While the country has been (for the most part) celebrating 50 years of independence, Uganda’s national symbol is in crisis. The Grey Crowned Crane is under serious threat as her wetlands habitats are polluted, eroded, degraded and built upon. Human development is swallowing up the wetlands.

Left unchallenged, the Crane will not survive, and it is estimated that the Grey Crowned (or ‘Crested’) Crane will be extinct in Uganda within just 20 years.

The Grey Crowned Crane, also known as the Crested Crane

Ironically, the fact that Cranes are monogamous birds that pair for life is one of the factors pushing them towards extinction. Some people hold the traditional belief that eating or using a Crane product will therefore strengthen their own relationship.

 

NatureUganda is leading the campaign to save the Crane.

We urge individuals and the authorities to protect the wetlands. We need people to ask themselves “when did you last see a young or adult Crane? Do you see them as often now as you did when you were a child?”

It is no coincidence that as humans encroach upon the wetlands, the number of Cranes has plummeted across the country.

NatureUganda’s Achilles Byaruhanga tells us more about this sensational bird in The Crested Crane: Uganda’s symbol of beauty and serenity

 

So why am I talking about this?

It’s because this Saturday 20th October will be BIG BIRDING DAY 2012!

BBD is a country-wide “big birding race” between birding groups, led by experienced bird guides, who will aim to record as many bird species as possible in a single 24 hour period.

NatureUganda has 47 teams registered so far, across the country. More teams are registering, making this the biggest BBD ever!

There’s free entry for all participants birding in National Parks, Wildlife Reserves and Forest Reserves – but you need to register with NatureUganda first.

The results of the BBD race will be announced during the Big Birding festival on Saturday 27th October 2012 at Entebbe Botanic Gardens. See poster for more details!

The importance of Birds

Despite the large number of birds in Uganda – almost half the continent’s species – very few Ugandans are aware of the country’s rich diversity. The “Uganda Big Birding Day” helps promote avi-conservation and avi-tourism – bird conservation and tourism or ‘birding.’ Although avi-tourism is developing in Uganda, very few locals take part – yet! More trained bird guides are needed!

If you like birds, you might enjoy some of my other stories about birding in Uganda.

Big Birding Day Uganda 2012

Check out all these lovely FREE events! Big Birding Day Uganda 2012

A disgusting day out

Looking for things to do around Kampala?

NatureUganda is a member organisation that organises affordable birdwatching trips around the country and researches numerous species, mainly birds.

Visiting the abattoir might not be top of every vegetarian’s wish list, but that didn’t stop two vegetarians from looking forward to a day out at the slaughterhouse, as part of Nature Uganda‘s annual vulture count. Interested in taking part?

Our gory tour took us to the very smelly outdoor Busega fish factory; the tidy, rustic Kyengera Abattoir and the formidable Kalerwe Abattoir, on the look-out for Hooded Vultures, Pied Crows, Brown Kites and Marabou Storks.

Nature Uganda vulture count, abattoir, Marabou storks

The annual Nature Uganda vulture count takes you to glamorous locations such as abattoirs! Here Marabou Storks congregate off Port Bell Road, Kampala

“I tried not to look at the blood and guts around me and looked down – and narrowly avoided stepping on a cow’s brain!” Said Alex the vegetarian. Not the most glamorous of day’s out for us ladies, tiptoeing around pools of dark red blood seeping into Kalerwe’s thick oozing mud…

Vulture Count Kalerwe Abattoir, Kampala

My Nature Uganda friend Roger had painted a grim picture of last year’s annual vulture count – but I couldn’t wait to experience the horror for myself!

Living in Uganda has desensitised me to the horrors of the meat trade. A vegetarian since the age of 13, it was learning about the UK’s concrete and metal ‘factory farms’ that turned me off meat, overnight. In the UK we’re as far removed from the slaughter process as could possibly be (it’s hard to reconcile the surgical cleanliness of the plastic-wrapped portions of meat in the supermarket with the reality of what happens to the animal in the slaughterhouse). Here in Uganda, it’s back to basics: blood, guts and all.

Heaps body parts Kalerwe Abattoir, Kampala

Heaps of (cow) body parts wherever we looked in Kalerwe Abattoir, Kampala – why can’t the Chinese make ornaments and medicines out of this lot and leave Africa’s rhino and elephants alone?

So why were we putting ourselves through this?

Vultures aren’t the world’s prettiest birds – that characteristic bald head helps keep the head clean when feeding on a carcass – but they (and the Marabou Storks) are arguably the most useful, and need to be protected.

Populations of the eleven species of African vulture have declined considerably. Threats vary, but include poisoning, loss of habitat, trapping for food and witchcraft.

Vultures are nature’s most successful scavengers. Known by some as ‘Superman of the bird world,’ vultures can eat Anthrax (without dying) and quickly dispose of diseased carcasses (without catching the disease) – and no other animal will eat their carcass.

In the past decade, hundreds of vultures have been accidentally killed across East Africa after consuming poisoned animals set to kill lions and hyenas which had attacked livestock. Vultures are also intentionally poisoned by poachers because the presence of circling vultures alerts wildlife authorities to the location of poachers’ illegal activities.

Hooded Vulture soaring above Kampala. PHOTO Achilles Byaruhanga

Hooded Vulture soaring above Kampala. PHOTO Achilles Byaruhanga

Three Hooded Vultures, Kampala. Photo Veena Naik

Three Hooded Vultures, Kampala. PHOTO Veena Naik

In a recent incident, 48 vultures were poisoned near the Ishasha River on the Congo border, their bodies found scattered along a path heading back to Queen Elizabeth National Park.

In Kenya, vulture numbers in the Maasai Mara National Reserve have declined by an average of 62% since the 1970s. Vultures have some of the lowest reproductive rates among birds, making them particularly vulnerable. A decade ago none of Kenya’s eight vulture species was on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species; now 6 out of 8 species are on the Red List, with populations declining at an alarming rate.

Information on Kenyan vultures edited from Summit to save Africa’s vulture populations from extinction on ‘African Raptors‘.

Nature Uganda Vulture Count Kampala

Hammerkop getting in on the act! Huge numbers of Marabou Storks overseeing the fish processing near Nateete, Kampala

So how is the demise of this ugly old bird linked to human health?

Following a decimation of the vulture numbers in India, there’s been an increase in disease transmission among dogs and rats. The subsequent increase in dogs and rabies is blamed for an estimated human health costs of $1.5 billion a year. If vulture numbers continue to decline in Kampala, what might be the impact on the residents of the city?

cow hoofs Kampala

Too hot to trot! Nothing goes to waste here …molokony (cow hoof) is a popular hangover cure

Back at the abattoir, the authorities were suspicious of the muzungu wandering around with a camera – all except this guy: “You take my picture” he said.

worker Kalerwe abattoir

My idea of hell – but just another day at work for this guy

Once beyond the understandably suspicious questions “are you from the Ministry of Health?” people seemed quite interested in what we were doing. Someone offered to feed the birds for us (for a fee). Another guy asked if we could solve the problem of the Marabous shitting on (and therefore destroying) his zinc roof!

At Kyengera, the unmistakable smell of burning flesh led us by the nose down to a shack where a whole cow’s head sat roasting on an open fire. For 500 shillings (the cost of two chapatis) I was invited to take a photo – or (just for laughs!) pose with the man stoking the fire and roasting the head – somehow that just seemed one step too far.

Aren’t you glad I didn’t take that last photo?

The species: in order of population size, Uganda has the following Vultures: White-backed, Hooded, Ruppell’s, Palm Nut, Lappet-faced, White-headed and Egyptian.

To learn more about the Kampala vulture counts, and other activities, visit the Nature Uganda web site.

If you like birds, check out the muzungu‘s Birds page for lots more Ugandan birding stories!

Down in the slum, after the rain

A glimpse of life in Namuwongo ‘go down’ along Kampala’s railway track

Marabou Storks railway Kampala. Photo Achilles Byaruhanga

Marabou Storks along the railway line in Kampala. Photo Achilles Byaruhanga, www.NatureUganda.org

The air is damp and heavy, the air is cool and last week’s fine, dusty marram earth is compacted beneath our feet. Limbs have been torn off the Pawpaw tree the other side of the compound wall and a single giant leaf, over four metres long, has been torn off the Palm tree. It lies there on the grass looking pathetic, no longer the majestic bough waving in the breeze.

It’s rained hard for the last two days. It’s a blessed relief for us all, although Baldrick’s been curled up in a tight ball on the doormat; he lives outside and the cold has got into his bones. He thinks nothing of stretching out in the sun in the heat of the day for hours: my Ugandan dog.

I decide to take advantage of the cool morning to go for a long walk and we take the short route down the path onto the railway line. It’s a sea of mud and empty cavera carrier bags. Water runs freely and collects in greenish grey puddles suffocated with plastic rubbish. The ducks are caked in mud and oil and the giant Marabou Storks peer down at us from atop the rubbish dumps.

I pick my way up and down the smooth marram pathway that winds its way between the makeshift shacks and public latrines. Here, all life happens out in the open, either side of the path: women deep fry cassava in big open woks just a foot from the main path. Children sit on dirty wooden benches next to open charcoal stoves, surrounded by plastic basins of washing-up, giant beaten aluminium pots of beans and converted oil drums brewing god knows what.

A man wants me to buy smoked dried fish.

“Salina ssente” I say – “I don’t have any money” – unwilling to open my bag in an area I don’t know and glad I won’t have to buy these fish that are covered in flies.

Two women hold a large piece of tripe over a bucket, one of them sawing it into two pieces. Muddy ‘Irish’ potatoes spill out of a sack onto the piles of black shiny charcoal.

To see a muzungu down in the slum must be quite unusual and I don’t hear the same number of greetings I get elsewhere. When I do speak, I’m aware many people don’t speak Luganda; many are refugees from northern Uganda or even further afield, South Sudan.

Wherever they’re from, the children still speak as one of course: “muzungu-how-are-you?” comes the chorus.

This is one of many walks that have taken me through the slum. It’s as fascinating as it is grim.

I used to live a stone’s throw away from Namuwongo ‘go down.’ The noise from the shanty town along the railway tracks was a constant backdrop to my life. I miss it. Here’s more about the terrible effects of  the heavy rains on life in the slum

I was embarrassed recently to dispose my rubbish in Namuwongo slum.

Advice from Nursie…

VSO training – how to keep safe and keep healthy in a developing country

First day on training course, focusing on health and security, and not sure whether it was nerves or excitement but when I was asked to introduce myself to the group, my mind went blank! I couldn’t remember where I’m going!!

A few interesting things … 98.8% of VSO volunteers don’t have any health problems or accidents but the nurse ran through a list of some of the complaints she’d come across. One of the reasons for ‘Psychological Repatriation’ as they call it was ‘being charged by an elephant’. Well needless to say the whole room howled with laughter… except me!

On another part of the course, we did some ‘Stakeholder Analysis’, drawing a diagram to illustrate the interaction between (in UCF’s case) the donors, the charity, government wildlife authority, Trustees, local people (villagers) and the end users – in this case elephants! Patrick, one of our Fab Three trainers, commented that it was the first time he’d seen elephants as stakeholders!

Elephant. PHOTO Uganda Conservation Foundation

Little did I know quite how important elephants would become in my new life!

Some gems from Liz the nurse:

    • Recognise the need to be dependent on other people, esp when you first arrive (difficult for a lot of us as VSO volunteers by their nature seem to be pretty independent).
    • Wash regularly and keep dry under your boobs…! 
    • Keep any cuts covered up in areas of high pollution.
    • If you’re eating street food, go to the busiest places and ask for it to be cooked for longer (you’re expected to be fussy anyway!) 
    • Avoid ice or drink the drink quickly before it’s melted! There was debate about whether exposure to a very small amount of bacteria is the same as exposure to a large amount. Apparently you can sometimes get away with a small amount of exposure to a ‘bug’ (tho obviously best avoided if poss).
    • If you’re travelling in public transport along bumpy roads, think of others as passenger as bubble wrap (i.e. sit right in the middle of everyone!)
    • Spit don’t swallow (when you’re brushing your teeth that is!)