Project Description

Uganda is one of the most biodiverse countries in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Seventy-five percent of Uganda’s population lives in rural areas and depend on small-scale agriculture and the use of natural resources. Uganda has also one of the youngest populations globally with 46% aged below 15 years that will result in continued rapid population growth in the coming decades. During the past Uganda has lost substantial parts of its natural habitat to agricultural expansion, improved road infrastructure and economic development. Hence, Uganda faces enormous challenges to achieve the SDGs. Rural areas in South Africa face similar challenges in many regards. The continued destruction of ecosystems and of the services they provide risks to increase poverty (SDG1), food insecurity (SDG2), human health risks (SDG3), conflicts (SDG16), but will also jeopardize achieving climate goals (SDG13) and threaten clean water availability (SDG6) in both countries. Protection, restoration and promotion of sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems and natural resources (SDG15) should therefore be at the core interest for achieving sustainable development in Uganda and South Africa.

Against this background, the project aims at enhancing SDG-related research and teaching through a strong North-South-South partnership between Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences (HSRW), Makerere University, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (MAK), and the Central University of Technology (CUT).

The project team of the DAAD-funded SDG Partnership (“Strengthening education and research capacity for enhancing biodiversity conservation and sustainable natural resource use”) is excited to offer four students of HSRW an opportunity to take part in a three week program, jointly organized with Makerere University (Uganda) and Central University of Technology (South Africa). The project budget will cover all expenses related to the travel to Uganda (flights, residence, visa cost and travel health insurance). This program consists of a:

• 2-weeks field course in Uganda, out of which half will be spent in Kampala at the Campus of Makerere University and the other half will be spent in a research camp in Kibale National Park (24th of May until 8th of June)
• 1 week of finalizing project results at the students’ respective home universities with a final (online) presentation (9th to 13th of June)

The field course serves students to obtain a deeper understanding of sustainable (rural) development challenges and to acquire practical participatory research skills. You will learn about rural and urban environmental problems, biodiversity conservation and general ecosystem assessment. Furthermore, you will be provided with insights into how to collect data with local communities and write a research report.