Minister of State for Environment, Mary Goretti Kitutu, has said Uganda is set to commemorate World Wetlands day, a date adopted from Convention on Wetlands in 1971, held in the Iranian city of Ramsar on the shores of the Caspian Sea.
Speaking at Media Centre Kitutu said celebrations will be held on February 2, 2019, at Limoto Primary School, Limoto Parish, Puti-Puti Sub-County, Pallisa District.
She said celebrations will be premised under the theme, ‘Wetlands and Climate Change’ underpinning critical roles played by wetlands in relation to nutrient and water cycling, climate change mitigation and adaptation.
“Wetlands are the planet’s most effective carbon sinks and represent the unrealized potential for climate change mitigation and adaptation. We need to protect our wetlands because the impact always goes to climate change as we prepare for the international World Wetlands Day.” she said
“Despite all the critical services that wetlands provide, 64 per cent of the world’s wetlands have been lost in the last Century. We continue to lose wetlands, at the rate of one per cent annually, which is faster than the rate of deforestation,”
She called on Ugandans to stop constructing in wetlands, they make communities more resilient to the impacts of climate change, “Government has the environmental benefit analysis to quantify the benefits of a program or project of an investor in regard to the cost,” She added
“As I speak changes in policy regarding use of wetlands are in Cabinet. We are not stopping investment but we need stronger restrictions,” he said.