Photo: Evening at Lake Bunyonyi, with the Sun hurrying off to sleep in Congo, as Muhabura watched with regal silence. © Muniini K. Mulera
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The news is good. Lake Bunyonyi has self-cleansed. Its crystal-clear waters are a pleasing sight to behold again. Not as perfect as they were a hundred centuries ago, when humanity had not yet arrived to turn its shores into a dwelling place. Not even as it was in my childhood, when Bunyonyi was a very clean and revered lake.
The same was true of the other medium to large lakes and rivers in Kigyezi, with interconnected swamps and other wetlands that were part of an ancient ecosystem that had not happened by accident. Little Kigyezi had a massive network of verdant swamps, those fascinating endless expanses with which my adolescent eyes fell in love.
Rwitanzigye (Edward) and Bunyonyi, the better-known lakes in Kigyezi, had small-medium-sized siblings – Mutanda, Murehe, Chahafi and Kayumbu in Bufumbira; Kanyabaha in Kashambya, and Kimbugu in Nyarushanje, Rukiga; and Garubunda (Nyakasanda) in Rujumbura. These eight lakes were interconnected by rivers and swamps in a union that had remained undisturbed for thousands of years.
The vast swamps of Mparo and its neighbourhood stood proud and inviting during the day, but dark and frightening at night. Cyperus papyrus, the dominant plant in these swamps, would sway gently in the breeze, the wind whispering on its way to places unknown, the frequent honks of grey crested cranes (Balearica regulorum) startling one to resume one’s work in the fields.
When night fell, the call of the frogs was almost always a sweet chorus, albeit unnerving enough to accelerate one’s walk home in the dark. Our elders had taught us to respect the swamps and their residents without much explanation. That was left to our geography and biology teachers who taught us about the critical importance of all that swam, swayed, crawled, walked, or flew.
The papyrus swamps in my area were part of an extensive system connecting the lakes of Bufumbira, passing through Omurubanda, and along the great River Kiruruma. The swamp branched southwest at Kabaare, along River Rwabakazi-Rugyendeira to Kitumba, all the way to Rubaya and Rwanda. The main swamp at Kabale continued down through Kyanamira to Maziba, hugging the Kiruruma, whose name perfectly described the power of its roar as it hurried towards the waterfalls downstream. A branch of the swamp headed to the Kahondo Valley, while the main swamp turned east to Kizinga.
From Muhanga to Rushebeya was all thick swamp. Joined by its sister from Mparo, the swamp headed north to Lake Kanyabaha, through Kashambya, on to Nyarushanje, feeding River Rushoma, along which the 30-metre waterfalls at Kisiizi lie. The swamp continued to Kebisooni in Rujumbura, hugging River Mineera, and calling in at Lake Garubunda.
Lake Bunyonyi had several swamps on its landscaped shores, including Nyombe, Mugandu and Majengye to the south, around its feeder River Kabiriita; Bugaroba to the west; and Aheiseesero to the north, hugging River Rwezamyenda on its way to Lake Mutanda. Swamps controlled floods, provided moisture, cleaned, purified and stored consumable water. They retained sediments, absorbed potentially harmful substances and detoxified the water. They recharged our underground water sources. They were habitats for various fishes, reptiles, amphibians, small mammals and numerous insects. They were holiday homes for migratory birds that flew south during the European winter and were favorite breeding places for the grey crested cranes.
Whereas humanity launched an attack on this fragile ecosystem as far back as 1931, the destruction of the swamps was at such a small scale that we did not notice the damage during our childhood. Things fell apart in the 1970s. Progressive overpopulation increased pressure on the land. From a population density of 170 per sq. km. in Kigyezi in 1969, it rose to 314 per sq. km. by 2014. Worse still, greed blinded people. The environment conserving ways of our ancestors were cast aside.
Just like the irresponsible deforestation of mountains and valleys, huge swathes of swamps were drained and turned into farms and private ranches. Experts report that up to 70 per cent of the swamps in Kabaare District alone were drained. The Rushebeya-Kanyabaha wetland in Rukiga shrank by 33 percent between 1986 and 2020. The swamps of Mparo-Rwakijabura-Ibumba, except for a small patch north of Kangondo, disappeared altogether.
Silting and blockage of streams and rivers reduced their ability to serve as drainage channels. Today, River Kiruruma (the roaring river) no longer roars. It whimpers in a sad, mournful motion as it flows down its ancient course to meet Rwabakazi Rugyendeira, its sadder partner that had once terrified my mothers and grandmothers in Mwisi because of its width, power, and rumoured depth. The other rivers of Kigyezi – including Kako, Mucha, Mukarara, Kabiriita, Kahondo, Mineera, Rushoma, Ncwera, Birira, Ishasha and Noozi have become small, with some downgraded to streams.
Meanwhile, some of the lakes became tourist attractions, complete with multiple hotels, camping sites, and lodges. Some became favourite places for “middle class” folks to live. All of which offered profitable business opportunities to entrepreneurs. The area around Lake Bunyonyi has 46 hotels. Bars and markets crowd the lakefront, all targeting tourists. This appears to have happened without a Lake Bunyonyi Development Plan. Critical infrastructure, including safe sewage and garbage disposal, indoor plumbing for all public and private facilities, and organized streets to ensure an orderly neighbourhood are lacking. There is no unoccupied buffer zone in the popular lakeshore areas. There is no lakeside trail for public use.
However, the recent browning of the lake has triggered heightened interest. The Ugandan Ministry of Water and Environment has proposed actions to arrest and reverse the situation at Bunyonyi. These include enforcement of environment and water resources regulations, public awareness campaigns, mandatory catchment protection, provision of alternative sources of income for the lakeside and upstream communities, and improvement of public sanitation infrastructure.
So, the recovery of Bunyonyi is a very pleasant event. It offers us an opportunity to engage in a purposeful evaluation and planning for a comprehensive and integrated development and protection of the lake, its surroundings, and the entire regional wetland ecosystem. We must restore and protect what God so carefully and purposefully created for the benefit of all generations.
Bunyonyi is easily one of the most beautiful places in East Africa. A tarmac road linking the lake to Kabaare is about to be constructed. It is a place that should become a choice destination for those who favour life that offers refreshing misty mornings, reflective afternoon waters around its 29 islands, and glorious orange skies as the Sun goes to sleep beyond Muhabura, the great volcanic mountain that is visible from the hills above Bunyonyi.
The abundant bird species that seldom sing out of tune, will cheer you in the day and serenade you to sleep with sublime orchestral music and songs without words.
© Muniini K. Mulera