By Alexander Mackey Okori
Unlawful trade of wild meat is thriving in Kotido district as former warriors turn their ‘guns’ to poaching in the Bokora-Matheniko Wildlife Reserve, threatening wildlife species.
The arid, vast landscape of Kotido District in Uganda’s Karamoja Sub-region should be teeming with the resilient wildlife for which East Africa is famous. Yet, increasingly, the bush hears the silence of absence.
Amidst crippling drought and grinding poverty, Kotido has emerged as a frontline in Uganda’s losing battle against illegal poaching, driven by a desperate demand for bushmeat.
Wildlife conservationists and local authorities warn that poaching in the district is no longer primarily a subsistence activity; it has evolved into a lucrative, organized poaching perpetrated the reformed Karamojong warriors locally known as “Karachunas”, meaning the youths that threatens to wipe out entire local populations of important species.
Benedict Oyugi, the District Councilor representing Napumpum Sub-county told this website that “the sale of wild meat, also known as bushmeat, has become a lucrative business, with poachers and traders reaping huge profits at the expense of the environment and local communities”.
“The illegal activity has lately become rampant among the residents of Napumpum and Rikitae Sub counties with wild meat being sold in open markets during broad day time”, said Oyugi.
According to him, the poachers are the former armed warriors who have turned on poaching as a means of survival through sale of game meat.
Oyugi explained that these reformed warriors hunt the animals during the night using bows and arrows as well as torches to attract them from the Bokora-Matheniko wildlife reserve which covers Kotido, Napak and Moroto districts”.
They hunt the animals during the night using bows and arrows as well as torches to attract them from the Bokora-Matheniko wildlife reserve which covers Kotido, Napak and Moroto districts.
The Cobs (Ngikaleeso), Ostriches, Antelopes, Guinea Fowls (Ngatapengo) are some of the common preys to the skilled hunters who kill between five and 10 different animal species per day according to local estimates. The vice according to Oyugi, is a threat to wildlife.
Paul Nangiro, the LC1 Chairperson of Napumpum village said that the rate of killing wild animals is alarming and should be checked the poached meat is transported through a complex network of trade routes, spanning across the districts.
He claimed that middlemen buy the meat from poachers and sell it to vendors in other markets outside the Karamoja Sub-region.
“Kotido town is providing the biggest market to wild meat, and most meat roasters have grasped the opportunity to make profits. At Napumpum Trading Centre, game meat is the order of the day with a piece of meat going for as low as Shs2,000,” Nangiro revealed.
The Geography of Desperation
Kotido’s geographical position, bordering the wildlife corridors connecting reserves like Kidepo Valley National Park and the Pian Upe Game Reserve, makes it a natural target and transit zone.
While elephants and lions are sometimes targeted, the current crisis centers on smaller, easier-to-kill ungulates vital to the ecosystem.
“We are finding dozens of snares daily,” explains Capt. Moses Ochola, a Sector Warden with the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) operating near Kotido. These animals are easy to trap and their meat fetches a good price when transported to larger markets like Mbale or even Kampala.”
Capt. Ochola estimates that for every animal successfully rescued, at least ten have already succumbed to crippling traps or been killed and smuggled out.
“The insidious nature of the hunt relies heavily on simple, cheap wire snares, which kill indiscriminately often leaving pregnant females or juvenile animals to rot, maximizing the ecological damage”, he (Ochola) noted.
Challenges for Enforcement
The UWA rangers tasked with policing the vast, often hostile terrain of Kotido face daunting challenges. They are severely under-resourced, having to cover hundreds of square kilometers on limited fuel and with outdated equipment.
“Our patrols are constant, but the area is immense,” Capt. Ochola explains. “We need more vehicles, more manpower, and crucially, more intelligence. Poachers exploit the sheer distance between settlements and our limited deployment points. In addition to manpower issues, there is a persistent problem of weapon proliferation in the region”, said Capt. Ochola.
He observed that although arms removal programs have been implemented, former pastoral conflicts have left cheap, accessible firearms and ammunition in the hands of some criminal elements, making confrontations with rangers increasingly dangerous.
However, Martin Oryem, the Warden Community Conservative for Kidepo National Game Park said they are going to crack a whip on the poachers after sensitization of the communities.
Oryme, noted that under the Uganda’s Wildlife Act of 2019, poaching of endangered species can lead to life imprisonment, a fine of up to 20 billion Ugandan shillings (approximately $5.5 million), or both.
He highlighted that selling or being in possession of wild meat also attracts penalties under the Uganda Wildlife Act, 2019.
Need for sustainable solutions
Ambrose Toolit, the Director, Grassroots Alliance for Rural Development (GARD) urged government to focus efforts on strategies that move beyond mere enforcement to address the root causes of the crisis.
One primary approach Toolit is agitating for livelihood diversification through introduction of drought-resistant crops, support poultry farming, and establishment of value chains for non-timber forest products, offering communities alternative, legal sources of income.
“The key is making conservation economically beneficial to the people of Kotido,” said Toolit. “We need to show them that a live Kob or elephant, attracting tourists, is worth far more than a dead one sold for a one-time payment.”
He further underscored the urgent need for improved community engagement, urging UWA to establish local informer networks and community wildlife committees, shifting the narrative from one of confrontation to one of partnership.
However, time is running out. Unless immediate, comprehensive interventions are made—backed by sustained funding and political will, the silence descending upon the Kotido bush will soon be absolute, marking the catastrophic loss of a vital piece of Uganda’s natural heritage
