THREATS AND IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE: CASE STUDY- UGANDA ITU Workshop “Moving to a Green Economy through ICT Standards” 6th -8th September 2011 By: Nakiguli Helen Cynthia Uganda Communications Commission

CONTENT Background Threats/risks Current indicators/impacts Constraints of conservation and adaptation Possible strategies and interventions Proposed/potential interventions for ICTs to Tackle climate change Conclusion References

BACKGROUND Uganda-Land locked country Wetland-15% of total land area⁽⁵⁾ Holiday like weather- pleasant and enjoyable temp Popn-35m with growth rate of 3%pa Trees, forests, woodland-14% of land surface (45% in 1890)⁽⁵⁾ Agriculture as main stay of its economy (const.34% of GDP, 81% of country's employment, therefore vulnerable to climatic variations)

THREATS/RISKS 7% of original wetland in Uganda-converted to other land issues -loss of biodiversity⁽²⁾ Current rate of population growth is too high to ensure sustainable use of ENR Increasing demand of forest products and forest land 82% of households use firewood for cooking, 15.2% for charcoal, 94% biomass of all energy consumed⁽²⁾ 7% of households receive main grid electricity⁽¹⁾ Increased climate variability- too many rains in some areas and drought in other areas-farmers uncertain of cessation of rainfall seasons

CURRENT INDICATORS/IMPACTS Climate Variability Prolonged heavy rains Increased floods, Home displacement, Elnino rains (1997/98)- claimed lives-cholera Destroy infrastructure, Reduced agriculture prodn, Landslides -Bududa Shortage of rains-drought Food shortage, Disease prone, Death

Wetland and river bank degradation (above), Kampala-Byaise flooding (below)⁽⁸⁾ Mabira forest reserve(above), Siltation impact on lake Wamala (below)⁽⁸⁾

CONSTRAINTS OF CONSERVATION/ADAPTATION Technical Meteorological centers. Low capacity in both financial and human resources to acclimatize to climate change-Limited requisite expertise⁽¹⁾ Weak coordination mechanisms⁽¹⁾ Un reliable scientific data Social Economic Inadequate conceptualization of the importance of weather and climate information⁽¹⁾ Limited awareness levels-comfortable with what we have/blindness- as it was, it shall forever be….Low appreciation of the challenge Increasing population-high agricultural and settlement demands Political No safety regulations, policies, guidelines developed Political interference and investments

POSSIBLE STRATEGIES AND INTERVENTIONS Implementation of the UNFCCC- activities⁽¹⁾ National climate change policy Identify every sector role in climate change actions Redefine climate change into development planning Increase awareness build capacity through institutional manpower development strengthen climate /weather monitoring Provide and promote incentives for clean development Develop and implement incentive mechanisms for reduced emissions E-waste management Clean energy-renewable energy sources Implement various climate change interventions and strategies Identify how ICT can aid in monitoring, mitigation and adapting to climate change

PROPOSED/POTENTIAL INTERVENTIONS FOR ICTs TO TACKLE CLIMATE CHANGE Green ICT services/facilities and products Renewable energy sources for powering ICT facilities in rural areas support smart communications- e-meetings, teleconferences Environmental monitoring Construct automatic weather monitoring stations, early warning system in disaster prone areas⁽⁹⁾ Data capturing and recording of GHG emissions Build capacity in environmental monitoring using ICT E-waste management Develop and implement an e-waste management policy Establishment of regional collection centers, recycling and disposal of E-waste Sensitisation of e-waste management Incentives in place for e-waste collection

CONCLUSION Current trends indicate persistent degradation in ENR Reduced agricultural production Climate change will affect every sector of development Uganda is making concerted efforts to combat /deal with climate change Important to identify priority activities that respond to adaptation of climate change-opportunities to develop climate change mitigation and adaptation programmes. ICTs can play a major role in mitigating impacts of climate change as well as aiding climate change adaptation.

REFERENCES National Development Plan(Uganda)2010/11 State of the environment report for Uganda 2008 Climate change and agriculture 2008 Hidden Heat: Climate Change in Uganda (Google-20/8/2011) A content analysis report on climate change impacts, vulnerability and adaptation in Uganda (2001) Status of forests in Uganda- Africa Journal of Ecology Assessing the impacts of climate change in Uganda –World water assessment programme Applications of ecosystem approach in environmental inspections (NEMA) ICT and climate change- Ministry of ICT, Uganda