RUKUNGIRI DISTRICT WIKIPEDIA

Rukungiri District is a District in the Western Region of Uganda bordered by Democratic Republic of Congo to the North West, Mitooma District to the North East, Ntungamo District to the Southeast, Kabale District to the South, Kanungu District to the west, The town of Rukungiri is the site of the District headquarters which is approximately 400 kilometres (250 mi), by road, south-west of Kampala. The coordinates of the town are 0°47'24.0"S, 29°55'30.0"E (Latitude:-0.7900; Longitude:29.9250).

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

At Independence in 1962, Rukungiri District was part of the Kigezi District. In 1974, Rukungiri District was created under the auspices of taking services nearer to the people. By then it was called North Kigezi District until 1980 when the name was changed to Rukungiri District. It is one of the 14 districts that were selected in 1993 for the second phase of decentralization. Since its creation and particularly after decentralization, the district has gone through significant successes to establish itself on a firm ground especially with regard to improved management, planning capacity and participation of communities in the development process. In 2001, the greater Rukungiri gave birth to Kanungu district thus reducing the district to only 2 counties; Rujumbura and Rubabo.

KEY GEOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION

a) Soils

The soils in the district are generally sandy clay loams. The most common soil types are greyish brown sandy loams and reddish brown sands with sandy loams. Dark brown sandy clay loam is also common. The parent rock to these soils is rift valley sediments and volcanic ash. Pressure due to population increase and poor methods of soil management and the land tenure system have negatively affected the soils and degradation is rampant.

b) Altitude

Rukungiri District is characterized by undulating hills, which are smooth in outline, with steep fluted slopes and U shaped valleys. The hill tops continually rise to over 1,846 m above sea level. It has plateau areas, which are deeply incised particularly within the rightward drainage with local relief dropping to 615 m above sea level.

c) Geo-morphology

The geological formation of the district indicate rocks formed between 3,000 and 6,000 million years ago (pre-Cambrian era) which makes them very old. The district is characterized by undulating hills with steep fluted slopes and U shaped valleys. The hill tops continually rise to over 1,864 m above sea level. It has plateau areas which are deeply incised particular within the rightward drainage with local relief dropping to 615 m above sea level.

d) Agro- Ecological Zones

The district is composed of 3 Agro Ecological Zones:- The first zone is the low land type dominated by the rift valley between 900m – 1300m above sea level with rainfall of less than 700mm. It‟s a dry area, suitable for cereals and covers mainly Bwambara and Bugangari and part of Ruhinda sub-counties (Nyarwimuka). The second zone is Rubosta coffee-banana farming system dominated by dissected plateau of altitude 1300-1700m above sea level with rainfall over 1000mm. The area is also dominated by cattle. The area covers Buyanja, Nyakagyeme, Kebisoni, Buhunga, Kagunga and the remaining part of Ruhinda sub-county. Low land Arabic coffee production is overtaking Robusta coffee because of coffee wilt disease. The 3rd zone is the montane type that lies over 1700m above sea level, similar to the Kabale district suitable for Irish potatoes, vegetables, sorghum and Arabic coffee and temperate fruits production. The area covers Nyarushanje and Nakishenyi sub-counties.

e) Topography

There are three distinctive topographic zones namely; The Highland Area: This is associated with rejuvenated landscapes. It was affected by rift valley faulting. This topography is deeply incised with steep slopes, which occur along fault lines and extend considerable distances beyond drainage basins. The hills characteristically encircle lowland embankments, which are broadly circular. This zone includes the sub-counties of Nyarushanje and Nyakishenyi. The Plateau Area: It is associated with gently undulating plains merging into Lake Edward. This area gradually rises from 9,234 m (Lake Level) to slightly over 1,169 m near the escarpment. The change in level is due to lake terracing as the water receded due to up warping during late rift movements. This zone includes the sub-counties of Kebisoni, Buyanja, Ruhinda, Buhunga, Nyakagyeme and Rukungiri Municipality. The Rift Valley Area: This is relatively flat with broad tracts of clay swamps. It is an elongated trough-like feature cutting across the district. It is extensive in Bwambara Sub-county especially the Queen Elizabeth National Park.

f) Rain fall

The district receives bimodal rainfall with long rains received from February-May and short rains from September-November. The mean annual rainfall ranges between 700 mm-1200 mm. Climatic changes have resulted into unpredictable heavy rainfall and prolonged drought. The erratic and cessation of rainfall as a result of climate variability makes it difficult for farmers to plan when to plant crops. There have been instances of frequent crop failures of late, hence, to reduce vulnerability to the deleterious effects of climate change and climate variability, adaptation plans including early warning systems need to be put in place.

g) Relative humidity

The District is generally cool with daily temperatures ranging from 150 C to 200 C. There is no readily available data on humidity and winds.

h) Vegetation

The district vegetation comprises of 11% Tropical High Forests, 5.5% woodland, 2.6% bush land, 21.3% grassland, 52% farmland and 7.6% open water. The district is host to some forest reserves namely Ihimbo Central Forest Reserve (CFR), South Imaramagambo CFR and Rukungiri CFR among others. Eucalyptus and pine species constitute the biggest percentage of plantation forests. Other forest reserves in the district include Bwambara, Rushaya, Rwengiri, Kagogo, Rubabo and Kebisoni with a total planted area of 355 (ha). Human activity particularly habitat destruction, deforestation, poaching and encroachment are issues of concern as they lead to loss of biodiversity. 7

i) Land

It has a total land area of 1,444.9 Sq. Kms (557.9 Sq. miles) and water covers 222.4 Sq. Kms (85.9 Sq. miles). The main types of land tenure existing in the District are customary, freehold and leasehold tenure. Land use in the District falls in five main categories namely grasslands, swamps, forests, small and large scale farming and built up area. Like other Districts in Uganda, most people in Rukungiri District derive their livelihood from land. However, the increasing population has created pressure on the finite land resources. Land fragmentation is rampant in the district and this has lowered land productivity, however the district has drafted a land utilization policy to ensure optimum exploitation of land resources by the local population.

j) Water

The district is endowed with a number of rivers and one major lake. Lake Edward is the main lake in the district where fishing activities take place at Rwenshama Fishing village. Other small lakes include Kimbugu in Nyarushanje Sub County and Lake Garubunda in Kebisoni Sub County. The District has both permanent and temporally wetlands (approximately 78.64 Sq km). They include Ntungwa (Birara) system, Nchwera system and Lake Edward margins. The drainage pattern consists of rivers of Butembe, Rushaya, Kahengye, Mineera, Birara, Mitano, and Nchwera that finally drain into Lake Edward. The other small streams include Kanywa, Kihunga and Rwakiriba among others. The overall safe water coverage of the district is currently 92% for rural households, while in towns, it goes to 95%. Rwerere, Kebisoni, Buyanja, Nyakagyeme, Buhunga, Bikurungu, Rwenshama, Kisiizi and Bwanga towns are all served with piped water.

POPULATION (2014 Census)

 • Total 36,509