Form Submission: Participation Entry

Like most countries in Africa, Uganda is exceptionally vulnerable to the effects of climate change and environmental demands. Both ecological and environmental stresses fall disproportionately to youth and women, with particular stresses to the northern regions where IDP’s are returning to abandoned landscapes after a long period of instability. Deforestation in these regions - largely a consequence political instability - have historically exaggerated food insecurity and economic livelihoods, as well as the economic instability of the country. As stability has returned to the region, so have the once displaced, now growing communities. With this brings a host of land use complications that stand in need of careful management. At this critical juncture for land use around Agoro-Agu’s Central Forest Reserve, communities have the chance to establish a thriving mutual reciprocity between the land’s resources and the local’s needs. As communities grow and land-use planning takes place formally and informally, it is vital that women, who perform a majority of the farming and cultivation work, are adequately represented in community conversations for land use planning and access. Through participatory interviews, surveys, focus groups, and dialogues, the men and women of Agoro-Agu Parish will meet together to analyze and prioritize their vision for land use strategies for the coming decades.