The Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) has launched another major wildlife conservation exercise with the translocation of four Nubian giraffes from the Murchison Falls Conservation Area to Ajai Wildlife Reserve, a move aimed at expanding the species’ range, enhancing biodiversity and strengthening tourism in northwestern Uganda.
The exercise forms part of UWA’s long-term conservation strategy to secure the future of the endangered Nubian giraffe, a species for which the authority manages the world’s largest remaining wild population.
According to UWA Assistant Commissioner for Veterinary Services, Dr. Patrick Atimnedi, who is leading the translocation team, the exercise is being undertaken in line with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Guidelines for Conservation Translocations, which require scientific evidence, habitat suitability assessments, disease risk analysis, stakeholder engagement and long-term post-release monitoring before wildlife can be relocated.
“The translocation follows internationally accepted conservation guidelines that ensure the animals are moved into a habitat capable of sustaining a healthy population over the long term,” Dr. Atimnedi said.
The decision to restore giraffes to Ajai Wildlife Reserve is backed by ecological research conducted in the early 1900s, which confirmed that the reserve contains extensive acacia woodlands capable of supporting healthy giraffe populations. Conservationists also expect the animals to play a vital ecological role by naturally managing vegetation while restoring the reserve’s historical wildlife composition.
The latest exercise builds on more than a decade of successful giraffe conservation initiatives by UWA. In 2015, the authority conducted its first-ever giraffe translocation, moving 15 Nubian giraffes—four males and eleven females—from Murchison Falls Conservation Area to Lake Mburo National Park. Since then, additional translocations have been successfully carried out to Pian Upe Wildlife Reserve on two occasions, Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary, the Uganda Wildlife Conservation Education Centre (UWEC), and now Ajai Wildlife Reserve.
The translocation is being implemented under UWA’s Giraffe Conservation Strategy, with technical support from the Giraffe Conservation Foundation, which has strengthened the authority’s conservation capacity through specialist training, including advanced wildlife translocation training for UWA staff in Namibia.
Beyond species conservation, UWA says the reintroduction of giraffes to Ajai Wildlife Reserve is expected to diversify tourism products, increase visitor numbers and position the reserve as an attractive wildlife destination in the West Nile tourism circuit. The initiative is also expected to contribute to local livelihoods through increased tourism-related economic opportunities.
The authority further notes that establishing viable giraffe populations across multiple protected areas reduces the risks associated with concentrating wildlife in a single ecosystem, improving the long-term resilience of the species against disease outbreaks, habitat degradation and other environmental threats.
The latest translocation underscores UWA’s commitment to science-based conservation, ecosystem restoration and sustainable tourism development, reinforcing its efforts to secure the future of one of Africa’s most iconic species while enhancing the country’s protected area network.
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