Rwenzururu Minister calls for collective action on climate change

4 September 2026, 9:34 am

By Kyamanduma Patrick

The changing climate in the Rwenzori region continues to affect communities from season to season, prompting calls for increased environmental conservation.

The Rwenzururu Kingdom Minister of Cultural Heritage, Native Administration and Veterans Affairs, Hon. Aganatiya Katya, has called for thorough consultations involving scientists, cultural and religious leaders, as well as local authorities, to address increasingly harsh weather conditions in the Rwenzori region.

His remarks followed concerns raised by Mr Nelson Baghuda Thembo, the LC1 Chairperson of Bubothyo Village in Ihandiro Subcounty, who called for closer collaboration among leaders at all levels to address the effects of the changing climate.

Speaking to Banya Rwenzururu during memorial celebrations for the late first Rwenzururu King, Isaya Mukirania, held at Bulemba in Ihandiro Subcounty, Kasese District, this week, Hon. Katya called for strategic interventions bringing together Kingdom subjects, leaders and scientists to discuss increasingly harsh weather patterns.

He said the changing weather patterns were not only threatening crop and livestock production but were also putting human lives at risk.

Representing the Chief Warden of Rwenzori Mountains National Park, Senior Warden Mr Asasio Kato warned Banya Rwenzururu against deforestation.

He noted that the national park provides communities with access to seedlings of various tree species that can help improve the environment and strengthen resilience to climate change.

Meanwhile, Mzee Asanairi Muthahinga Marahi, an elder from the area, recalled his memories of the death of the first Rwenzururu King, describing the death of King Isaya Mukirania as a shock that plunged the community into what he remembers as a dark period.