Resource information
It is against inappropriate decisions in the allocation of land use activities that are manifested, among others, in form of: land degradation, mainly soil erosion, loss of vegetation cover; loss of biological diversity, wetlands degradation, pollution, uncontrolled urban development, conflicts over land use, and reduced land productivity that government committed resources for the preparation of this National Land Use Policy.The policy aims to support the national objectives on poverty eradication and economic growth while at the same time ensuring sustainable utilisation of natural resources including land.The overall goal for the national land use policy is “to achieve sustainable and equitable socio-economic development through optimal land management and utilization in Uganda”.The specific goals for the national land use policy are the following: (i) to adopt improved agriculture and other land use systems that will provide lasting benefits for Uganda, (ii) to reverse and alleviate adverse environmental effects at local, national, regional and global levels, (iii) to promote land use activities that ensure sustainable utilization and management of environmental, natural and cultural resources for national socio-economic development, (iv) to ensure planned, environmentally friendly, affordable and well-distributed human settlements for both rural and urban areas, (v) to update and harmonize all land use related policies and laws, and strengthen institutional capacity at all levels of Government.In order to make agriculture, forestry and fisheries more productive and sustainable, the following strategies will be implemented by the policy: (i) to make available an updated soil resource inventory and present the data in form of a map, with map units that are as disaggregated as possible to be used for detailed land use planning purposes, (ii) to promote and ensure viable zonal agricultural production for land use improvement and processing for export, (iii) to promote farming practices that will reduce soil erosion hazard and enhance soil productivity, (iv) to promote sustainable use of marginal lands and fragile ecosystems, (v) to encourage farmers to adopt farming practices that sustain soil fertility and high crop and animal productivity on their land, (vi) ensure agro-chemicals available for use by farmers are clearly labelled and bear instructions for handling, safe use and disposal in order not to pollute water sources, (vii) develop adequate capacity among agricultural advisory service providers and farmers for the management of irrigation agriculture and associated land management problems.To increase the resilience of livelihoods to threats and crises that affect food security and nutrition, a key number of strategies will be implemented by the policy among others: (i) encroachment on and illegal settlement in protected areas is of concern, (ii) to halt and reverse the rate of deforestation in areas outside gazetted forest reserves, (iii) to establish and implement an effective mechanism for the management of wildlife outside protected areas, (iv) ensure proper land management of the hilly and mountain environments, (v) subject all infrastructure developments to Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), (vi) establish institutional linkages to plan and implement infrastructure development in forested areas, (vii) encourage practices that promote conservation of biodiversity among communities.In the context of governance, a national multi sectoral land use approach will be adopted. It will provide an enabling framework for appropriate land use in Uganda, and will be regularly reviewed to take into consideration any future adjustments related to emerging national priorities. The underlying principle will remain the use of land to address poverty reduction while at the same time using land resources sustainably in the quest for national social and economic development.
