The number of elephants in Uganda’s Queen Elizabeth National Park rose by more than 1 000 in the past two to three years, partly because of animals fleeing poachers and civil war in the neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), an official said on Monday.
Thousands of elephants in the park were slaughtered during the 1970s by dictator Idi Amin’s soldiers, then in the 1980s by various rebel armies. The area is now protected and the elephant population is boosted by animals fleeing from the Virunga National Park in the lawless eastern DRC.
”It is a continuous ecosystem which connects the two countries. You find our wildlife moves freely between the two countries,” said Lilian Nsubuga, spokesperson of the Uganda Wildlife Authority.
The eastern DRC is troubled by fighting between tribal militia, uncontrolled other armed groups and bandits — despite the presence of thousands of United Nations peacekeepers seeking to restore order in the vast region.
The DRC’s government has been unable to restore its authority in eastern provinces, nearly two years after the end of a devastating civil war that sucked in armies from six African nations, including Uganda.
A survey of elephants in Uganda late last year showed that the East African nation had 3 765 animals, Nsubuga said.
A total of 2 497 of these were in the Queen Elizabeth National Park.
The Murchison Falls National Park had 700 elephants and Kidepo Valley National Park was home to 338, Nsubuga said. — Sapa-AP