Museveni Orders End to Fees for Non Tourist Transit Through Murchison Falls National Park

President Yoweri Museveni has instructed the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) to stop charging fees for non-tourists who are using the road passing through Murchison Falls National Park to travel between Northern Uganda and the rest of the country. The road has become an essential route for many travelers following the temporary closure of the Karuma Bridge for rehabilitation.

During a meeting with the National Resistance Movement (NRM) Parliamentary Caucus at State House in Entebbe on October 4, 2024, President Museveni expressed his displeasure at the practice of charging non-tourists using the park road. He referred to it as nonsensical and incorrect, emphasizing that it was unnecessary to impose fees on people merely transiting through the park.

This decision came after a request from Government Chief Whip Denis Hamson Obua, who urged the President to waive the fees for travelers who had no intention of visiting the park but were using the road as an alternative to Karuma Bridge. Obua clarified that tourists visiting the park for leisure would still be required to pay the appropriate fees to maintain revenue streams for the park.

In response, President Museveni acknowledged the potential disturbance that vehicles—especially large ones—might cause to the wildlife in Murchison Falls National Park. He noted that the park’s animals were not accustomed to the heavy traffic of big vehicles, which may frighten them.

To address this concern, the President directed Vice President Jessica Alupo to convene a meeting between the Ministry of Tourism, conservationists, and Members of Parliament. The meeting, scheduled for next week, will focus on assessing the impact of the heavy vehicles on the park’s wildlife and tourism.

Museveni emphasized that the presence of big vehicles could reduce the likelihood of tourists seeing animals, which would harm tourism revenues. He questioned whether only smaller vehicles should be allowed through the park to minimize disruption and urged conservationists to provide comparative insights, citing Queen Elizabeth National Park as an example, where larger vehicles are permitted on certain roads.

Additionally, the President agreed to a request from the MPs to hold a meeting in Kisozi to engage local residents in discussions about wealth creation initiatives. He urged the MPs to take an active role in supervising these programs to ensure that Ugandans benefit from government services.

Museveni also encouraged MPs to promote environmental conservation, citing his Limoto Pilot Project as an example of how communities can shift from rice farming in wetlands to fish farming along the edges of the swamps. This approach, he argued, would be more sustainable and beneficial to both the environment and local livelihoods.

Corruption was another major point of concern for the President. He warned the MPs against engaging in corrupt activities, revealing that several arrests had been made recently, even within his own staff. Museveni vowed to continue cracking down on corruption, calling it a significant problem hindering service delivery in Uganda.

The President further emphasized the need for new Public Service Standing Orders to improve service delivery to the population, insisting that stricter regulations were necessary to ensure efficiency in public administration.

At the meeting, Government Chief Whip Obua announced that the President would resume his zonal tours later in October. These tours, which had previously covered Acholi, West Nile, and the Greater Masaka regions, aim to monitor wealth creation initiatives and promote socio-economic transformation. Obua encouraged MPs to actively participate in these tours to help Ugandans increase household incomes through programs such as the Parish Development Model (PDM), Emyooga, and the Four Acre Model.

The meeting was attended by several key figures, including First Lady and Minister of Education Janet Museveni, Vice President Jessica Alupo, and members of the NRM Central Executive Committee.

Table: Key Points from President Museveni’s Meeting