Shadrack dessert final

WASTE MANAGEMENT WITH IN URBAN AREAS IN UGANDA; A CASE STUDY OF
KYAZANGA TOWN COUNCIL, LWENGO DISTRICT.

BY

Natamba Shadrack

Signature ………………………. Date ……………………

RS09M13/503

A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES IN
PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF THE
DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN DEVELOPMENT STUDIES OF UGANDA
CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY.

SEPTEMBER /2011

ABSTRACT
The study on ‘waste management with in urban areas in Uganda; A case study of Kyazanga

Town Council, Lwengo District’. The situation of waste management in the emerging TC’s is

alarming and it was upon these observations that the researcher was compelled to carry out the

study. The objective of the study was to establish the underlying causes of poor waste

management and to seek opinions from the local people on how the problem would be solved.

This research acknowledges the fact that many scholars have written a lot on waste

management. Therefore, this research contains literature that has been reviewed from different

scholars that relate to the study. This literature helped the researcher to be in position to relate

and verify whether what other scholars have written could be applicable to Kyazanga and this

helped in identifying the gap that these researchers have not been able to identify.

An exploratory research design was used to explore all dimensions of poor waste management.

A mixed methods approach was used to obtain a variety of information on poor waste

management. The primary data which was collected from the field using Questionnaires and

interview guides was recorded, tabulated and analyzed using tables to come up with the

information about the causes of poor waste management in urban areas in Uganda; A case of

Kyazanga TC.

The reasons of the persistent poor waste management are beyond the numerous legal and

institutional frame works in place despite their presence. These include; ignorance, lack of

dumping site, lack of the technical staff, failure to prioritize waste management especially during

budgeting among others.

Recommendations have been made for example, the researcher advised that waste management

be prioritized in the TC’s action plans and budget allocations, and commitment of stakeholders

9/5/2011 shadrack Natamba +256(0)782/714/701-843010

in the terms of providing finances, time and materials to implement waste management planned

activities, strengthen the existing initiatives on waste management for instance the Volunteer

youth group and this could be done by giving the group an opportunity to collect wastes/garbage

from the Council and be paid for the services, and finally the researcher advised the Council to

revise and strengthen the by-laws and legislation relating to waste management as well as their

enforcement and the need for major generators of waste e.g. markets, schools to manage their

own wastes through developing frame works and self regulation e.g. by-laws for waste

management among other many recommendations.


DECLARATION

I Natamba Shadrack declare that this piece of work is the first of its kind and it’s not
a photocopy of someone’s work. I am the author of this dissertation and any
assistance I received in preparation is fully acknowledged and disclosed. Any
sources of data, ideas and words either direct or paraphrased have been cited in this
piece of work. I certify that this dissertation was prepared by me with the guidance
of my supervisor specifically for the partial fulfillment for the degree of Master of
Arts in Development studies of Uganda Christian University.

……………………………………

NATAMBA SHADRACK

(1ST September, 2011).


DEDICATION:

I also dedicate this work to my family
members; dad, mum, and my siblings and
my fiancé.

I do dedicate this piece of work to Ps.
Billy Rutledge from Hetteras island
Church, United states and church at large
for supporting me throughout my study
of this Masters degree. You made it
possible for me to accomplish this study.


AKNOWLEDGEMENT
I am totally convinced that the success in getting this study done did not come by single efforts
of my hands but the efforts of different players whose contributions were very instrumental to
see me through.
First and foremost, I want to thank the Almighty God for the insights, guidance, energy and
wisdom to complete this dissertation.

My highest gratitude goes to my University supervisor, Mr. Kizito Martin for guiding, collecting
and directing me throughout this study.

I particularly express my sincere appreciations to the Town clerk of Kyazanga TC, Mr. Mayanja
Majwala Badru for the time he spent with me during the research, moving with me and helping
in identifying the key informants who helped me in data collection.

Special thanks go to my all respondents, I cannot mention each of you by name but I hold you so
dearly. Thanks for the information.


KEY ACRONYM AND ABBREVIATIONS
PEAP: poverty Eradication Action Plan

NEMA: National Environmental Management Authority

NGO: Non-Governmental Organization

CBO: Community Based Organization

EIA: Environmental Impact Assessment

UNDP: United Nations Development Programme

T.C: Town Council

MDG: Millennium Development Goal

KTC: Kyazanga Town Council

WHO: World Health Organization

UNFCCC: United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

CDM: Clean Development Mechanism.

GHGs: Greenhouse gasses


CHAPTER ONE

1.0 Introduction.
Uganda like many countries in the world suffers from poor waste management. Poor waste

management is increasingly becoming a big problem in many cities in sub-sahara Africa and

Kyazanga is no exception. This study was conducted in Kyazanga Town council, Lwengo

District where by the researcher sought to explore the underlying causes of poor waste

management in the Town Council and at the end of the research, number of possible solutions

were proposed. The study investigated the relationship between waste management and what is

manifested as a result of the phenomenon (effects).

It was found that waste management is not an isolated phenomenon that can be easily classified

and solved with one strategy. The study found out that poor waste management is particularly an

urban issue that is closely related, directly or indirectly, to a number of issues such as urban

lifestyles, resource consumption patterns, jobs and income levels, and other socio-economic and

cultural issues. All these issues have to be brought together on a common platform in order to

ensure a long-term solution to urban waste.

Talking about methodology, this research being exploratory in nature, it used mixed methods

approach because of the need to obtain a variety of information on poor waste management. A

non-probability sampling techniques like purposive and quota sampling techniques will be

employed. Questionnaires and interview guides were administered to those sampled to

participate in the study about the causes of poor waste management and these were supplemented


by observation. Data was analyzed in line with the research objectives and questions and

recommendations were made accordingly.

Therefore, the study was seeking to validate what other scholars have written about poor waste

management as a whole and how applicable to the people of Kyazanga Town Council.

1.1 Background of the Study
The management of waste is one of the challenges facing many urban areas in the world. Where

there is an aggregation of human settlements with the potential to produce a large amount of

solid waste; the collection, transfer and disposal of that waste has been generally assumed by

municipal authorities in the developed world. The format varies, however in most urban areas.

Wastes are collected either by a government agency or private contractor, and this constitutes a

basic and expected government function in the developed world (Zerbock, 2003).

Developing countries have solid waste management problems different than those found in fully

industrialized countries; indeed, the very composition of their waste is different from that of

‘developed’ nations. Although low-income countries’ solid waste generation rates average only

0.4 to 0.6 kg/person/day, as opposed to 0.7 to 1.8 kg/person/day in fully industrialized countries,

Cointreau (1982) and others (Blight and Mbande 1996, Arlosoroff 1982) noted several common

differences in the composition of solid waste in developing nations:

• Waste density 2-3 times greater than industrialized nations,

• Moisture content 2-3 times greater,

• Large amount of organic waste (vegetable matter, etc.),

• Large quantities of dust, dirt (street sweepings, etc)

• Smaller particle size on average than in industrialized nations.


These differences from industrialized nations must be recognized both in terms of the additional

problems they present as well as the potential opportunities which arise from their waste

composition.

As earlier noted in the introduction, Poor waste management is not an individual country’s

problem but rather it is increasingly becoming a big problem in many cities of the world. For

instance, according to the 1999 State of the Environment Report for South Africa (DEAT, 1999),

the country generates over 42 million m3 of solid waste every year. This is about 0.7 kg per

person per day, which is more typical of developed countries than a developing country (by

comparison the figure in the UK is 0.73 kg, 0.87 kg in Singapore and 0.3 kg in Nepal). In

addition, 5 million m3 of hazardous waste is generated every year (DEAT, 1999). Every day 2.6

million of domestic and commercial waste water is processed at treatment works. The last figure

does not include agricultural and some industrial waste, which are the largest sources of waste

(DEAT, 1999).

In Uganda like in many other developing countries, typically one to two thirds of the waste

generated is not collected (Zerbock, 2003). As a result, the uncollected waste, which is often also

mixed with human and animal excreta, is dumped indiscriminately in the streets/wards and in

drains, contributing to flooding, breeding of insect and rodent vectors and the spread of diseases

such as cholera among others.

Most researchers have linked Waste generation directly to the size of population and the various

activities undertaken by different categories of the population including large scale industries,

small-scale industries, trading/businesses, municipal farming, household, schools and hospitals

among others. Hence, it clearly means that waste generation will increase with increasing

population growth (ibid).


In Kampala alone, waste generation estimations have been rated at 0.2 metric tons per person

annually on average (Ngategize et al., 2001). Therefore, considering an urban population of 3.7

million people that is; 13.4% of the total population (Uganda Population secretariat, 2007), it

means that approximately 740,000 metric tons of solid waste are generated in urban areas per

year. Of this, only 41% solid waste generated is disposed off properly (UNDP, 2005). The

remaining 51% is left uncollected thereby ending up dumped in drainage and sanitary drainage

channels, natural water courses, manholes, undeveloped plots and road sides among other unfit

places (NEMA, 2004).

Poverty Eradication Plan (PEAP) recognizes that waste management is almost non-existent in

Uganda. It denotes that for instance in Kampala, refuse is collected from only 20% of the

population and only half of it is disposed in a proper way with the rest being dumped

indiscriminately (PEAP, 2004/2005). Furthermore, little attention has been given to waste water

disposal and storm drainage. Drainage is poor and limited to major roads and pathways.

Most local governments and urban agencies have, time and again, identified solid waste as a

major problem and this has been attributed to poor institutional arrangements, poor technologies

used and lack of the capacity to handle wastes (ibid). This has reached proportions requiring

drastic measures. We can observe three key trends with respect to waste - increase in sheer

volume of waste generated by urban residents; change in the quality or make-up of waste

generated; and the disposal method of waste collected, by land-fill, incineration among others. In

relation to Kyazanga, the researcher’s efforts to find the related literature were futile. However,

as already mentioned, this research established that Kyazanga TC was not be unique from other

urban areas. (See the findings in Chpt 4).


In conclusion, it is important that the right action be carried out at the right level. Thus, actions at

the household level should be predominantly social, technology and economic in nature.

Similarly actions to be taken at the state and nation level should also be predominantly

economic, political and administrative in nature.

1.2 Problem Statement.
Despite several efforts, legal and institutional frame works that are in place to enhance proper

waste management, there is still persistent poor waste management in Uganda and Kyazanga

inclusive. Legal frame works like the constitution of the Republic of Uganda 1995 Article 245

(a) provides measures intended-To protect and preserve the environment from abuse, pollution

and degradation,”1 The National Environment (Waste Management) Regulations, S.I. No

52/1999;2 The Local Government Act 1997, all have provisions of how all wastes shall be

properly managed among other regulatory frame works like

People do not care about the way wastes are handled be because of the ignorance about the

likely dangers of poor waste management and the institutions like the Town Council has not

played its part as well due to both human and financial resources.

In addition to the above, there is the lack of proper institutional arrangements, poor technologies

like lack of modern trucks and the lack of the capacity by the council to handle the wastes

generated and there is no Private-Public partnership or CBOs ready to do the work.

1
The constitution also enshrines a constitutional right to a clean and healthy environment in its article 39.
Civil society has used article 50 of the constitution to enforce this right using public interest litigation.

2The National Environment (Waste Management) Regulations, S.I. No 52/1999. STATUTORY INSTRUMENTS.
1999 No. 52. Regulations, 1999. (Under sections 53(2) and 107 of the National Environment Act, Cap 153) [19th
October 1999]


For instance, Studies indicate that each person in Kampala city produces 1 Kg of solid waste per

day (Tenywa et al., 2007). The waste generated in towns in Uganda, Kyazanga inclusive is

hardly collected and even what is collected is not sorted and there is no gazetted area to dispose

off wastes. Additionally, even the government development programs rarely put waste

management aspects into consideration for instance the health facilities, public markets, schools

among others. Furthermore, there are limited appropriate technologies and practices for waste

management and also the limited capacity among stakeholders (technocrats, extension agents,

private sector etc) in addressing waste management issues.

This state of affairs has far reaching implications on community livelihoods and environment

posing great health risks for instance; solid waste at informal disposal sites produces toxic gases,

bad odour and creates air pollution. This has led to increased incidences of diseases like cough,

diarrhea, Fever among others, hence increasing public expenditure on drugs. Yet a properly

managed waste is wealth (Zake et al 2008:6). Wastes have got enormous opportunities for

instance metallic containers can be used to make paraffin candles (tadoba), children toys, simple

local measuring cans, wrapping paper and envelopes out paper wastes, and waste can be an

alternative to generate fuel. A case in point is Kasubi community development association which

has resorted to using banana peelings to come up with charcoal briquettes and this has made

house hold energy conserved (EA, 2007). This problem of poor waste management requires

innovative solutions and one of the solutions could be a participatory approach where the local

people are involved to define the problem and then propose the solutions.

Therefore, this study sought to explore the causes of poor waste Management and the local

people’s opinions on how the problem would be minimized. The data gathered in this study


provided leaders with information relating to how they may address or mitigate factors

responsible for poor waste management in the Town council.

1.3 The purpose of the study
The purpose of this study was to establish the underlying causes of poor waste management and

to seek the local people’s opinions on how the problem would be handled.

1.4.1 Specific objectives
 To find out the means used too collect, transport and dispose off wastes.

 To establish the underlying causes of poor waste management in Kyazanga Town

Council from both the leaders and the local people.

 To identify the possible solutions to archive proper waste management.

1.4.2 Research Questions.
 What mechanisms are in place to collect, transport and dispose off wastes in the town

council?

 What are the causes of poor waste management in Kyazanga T.C.?

 Are there ways that can be employed to deal with poor waste management in the council?

1.5 Scope of the Study.

1.5.1 Geographical scope
The study was conducted in Kyazanga Town council one of the Newest Town Councils that

gained status in July 2010, Lwengo district, which is located in the Western wing of central

region. The town council is bordered by Masaka in the east, Rakai in the south, Lyantonde in the

west and Sembabule in the North. The study covered 100 respondents in the bid to establish the

underlying causes of poor waste management in Kyazanga Town Council and the study

employed both quantitative and qualitative methods.


1.5.2 Study scope
This study helped identify the causes of poor waste management in Kyazanga T.C, and remedies

were developed. The study confined only on wastes from households, schools and health centres

in the selected zones. The study highlighted the effectiveness of the current waste management

policies. As a result the necessary remedies were recommended. The studies also drew lessons

from best practices elsewhere and suggested ways of adopting them.

The researcher reviewed documents, reports and collected data from 2005 to date. The data

collected covered five years before Kyazanga gained a Town Council status and after in order to

be able to illustrate whether with the new status, the problem of poor waste management has

reduced, remained the same or intensified.

1.6 Significance of the Study
It is hoped that the findings of this study will help raise awareness on issues pertaining to waste

management for the community and policy makers especially at the Town council level. And this

awareness will help build initiatives to reduce the problem. A copy of this research shall be sent

to the Town Council upon approval by the University authorities.

The study will help provoke debate on waste management issues. In the course of this debate

better options may be developed and these would be helpful to the urban authorities in their

planning strategies since they will be able to identify the gaps existing in the waste management.

Partners in development could use this information by identifying specific income generating

activities, thus making waste contribute to the poverty eradication programme in Kyazanga

Town council. In his studies in Kenya, Kim (1998), notes, while there is considerable

documentation on innovative community-level waste management schemes in Asian and Latin


American cities, little research has been done on the importance of, and potential for, waste re-

use in African cities. This study identified the contribution of waste.(see Chapt.4).

This research generated more information to the already existing body of knowledge in the area

of waste management and to Kyazanga, it is the first one of this kind.

In addition to the above, the study will also provide future scholars and researchers with

information regarding the causes of poor waste management especially in Kyazanga Town

council.

1.7 Justification
It is highlighted that Africa is littered with non-engineered landfill sites and other inefficient

means of waste disposal strategies for instance; Incinerators with inappropriate air pollution

control devices. This unpleasant development has led to some untimely human deaths, which

was estimated to be up to 20,000 in a year (NEMA, 1998).

Poor waste management has been found to result into pollution of both surface and ground water

through the leachate draining and impairing the permeability of soils as well as blockage of

drainage systems (NEMA, 1998). Studies in the Kasubi- Kawala area have established that the

count of harmful Coliforms (1980 cfu/ml), Eschelica coli (540 cfu/ml) in protected springs far

exceed the World Health Organization (WHO) thresholds (0 cfu/ml).

It was against this background that the study on waste management was carried out to explore

the underlying causes to the challenges of waste management in Kyazanga town and indeed the

causes were identified and possible remedies suggested.


1.9 Conceptual framework illustrating the relationship between the causes of
poor waste management and its effects.

The conceptual frame work illustrates the relationship between the presumed causes

(independent variables like- lack of awareness, Ignorance by the local people, Weak policies,

Lack of enough trained manpower, Inadequate funds etc) of poor waste management and the

presumed effects (dependent variables)-what is manifested as a result of the phenomenon.

Independent variables Dependent
Relationship Interventions
variables
Causes of poor waste
management
Effects

 Public awareness creation
Lack of awareness  Indiscriminative dumping  Strengthening of the legal and
Ignorance by the local will lead to Infrastructure institutional framework
people destruction like roads
 Capacity building/training
Lack of enough trained  Un-collected wastes,
manpower  Funding inventory of
dumping on roadsides this
Weak policies leads to Contamination of hazardous waste
Inadequate funds water bodies Sanitation Expected output
and hygiene
 Buildings without  Proper waste management
dumping sites  Improved health
 Failure to implement the  Save income-that would
laws have been spent on drugs
 Reduction on expenditure
on say fuel

From the above illustration, it can be observed that the presumed causes (independent variables)

lead to presumed effects (dependent variables). Independent variables like lack of awareness lead

to ignorance of the local people about the effects of waste management, and lack of enough

trained manpower and weak policies and inadequate funds are presumed to lead to

indiscriminative dumping of wastes on roadsides; the residents set structures like buildings

without dumping sites because of weak laws among others.


It was found out that all these led to a number of Health problems and these include;

Infrastructure destruction, Contamination of water bodies and Sanitation and hygiene and

environmental degradation.

However, it is presumed that strengthening the legal and institutional frameworks, capacity

building and funding inventory of hazardous waste among others will yield several outputs like

Proper waste management, improved health since the cause of illness will have been dealt with,

save income-that would have been spent on drugs and also save the environment from being

polluted among others


CHAPTER TWO

2.0 Literature Review

2.1 Introduction
In this chapter, attempts were made to review relevant literature to help in the understanding of

poor waste management. The researcher acknowledges the fact that there is some literature on

waste management in Towns of Uganda and in other countries of the world. Most of the

literature reviewed was from the different sources like text books, websites, News papers and

journals. In this section, the main purpose was to review issues related to waste management that

have been investigated by other researchers, in order to gain more insights into the subject under

the study and avoid duplications of efforts in this area.

2.2 Definition of terms and concepts.
Waste is a man-made substance in a given time and places which in its actual structure and state

is not useful to the owner or is an output without an owner and purpose. In other words, waste is

anything that we no longer need. It is also commonly referred to as rubbish, trash, garbage,

refuse, effluents and “unwanted or unusable materials”. (Zake J: 2007).

Synonymous to solid waste are terms such as “garbage”, “trash”, “refuse” and “rubbish”

(Zurbrugg, 2000). Urban dwellers generally consume more resources than rural dwellers, and so

generate large quantities of solid waste and sewage. For example, solid waste disposal is a major

problem in urban African centres, where more than half the population

It is important to note that wastes take two forms that is; solid or liquid wastes; Solid wastes refer

to particles or materials which are no longer useful to their owners and which require to be

discarded. They are movable objects, which have no direct use and or no ‘current’ market value

or no use to the individual that they require to be disposed off. They are both

organic/biodegradable for instance the waste generated from animal and plant remains; it may be

broken down by living organisms such as bacteria, protozoa and fungi. This form of waste

occurs as green plant tissue waste, food remains, paper, animal and waste (faeces and urine), and

non-organic/non biodegradable wastes, is that form of waste that cannot be broken down by

living organisms. It includes metals, polyethylene, most plastics and rubber. Most non

biodegradable wastes are produced from manufacturing industries.

On the other hand, Liquid wastes refer to waste materials that contain full liquids. These include

waste water from industries, households; sewerage and leachates from land fill or garbage heaps.

This is equally harmful to the water sources hence endangering both human beings who depend

on such water sources and the aquatic life. It also destroys the land and its level of productivity

since some of these wastes like grease, paints will deepen into the soils hence affecting the soil

alkalinity (Environmental Protection Agency, 2008).

The term ‘Waste Management’ includes all issues and processes associated with the generation,

processing, and disposal of all categories of wastes produced by human activities or related to

human existence; it includes, therefore, the stages of production and minimization, collection,

handling and transportation, reuse and recycling, and treatment and disposal of all such wastes.

(Zake J, 2007)

Despite the fact that waste handling and transport varies from region to region, country to

country, there are waste management concepts that are universally accepted and implemented.


These are the waste hierarchy or the 3Rs (reduce, reuse and recycle), the extended producer

responsibility (EPR) and the polluter pay principle.

According to NEMA (2000), Solid waste management encompasses generation, collection,

transportation and disposal of wastes. Authorities have the responsibility to ensure safe, reliable

and cost effective removal and disposal of solid waste Garbage is collected from both the well to

do households and poor ones now lives in urban areas. Northern Africa is the most urbanized,

while in Southern and in Western and Central Africa, urbanization levels are still lower (about

33-37 percent.) East Africa is the least urbanized sub-region, with 23 percent (United Nations

Populations Division, 1997).

2.3 Why undertake waste management?
Waste management is undertaken mainly to minimize the effect of wastes on resource loss and

conservation, health, environment, costs, and aesthetics. It incurs financial and social and other

costs including ‘external’ costs. The term includes the issue of ‘regulation’ of the various aspects

of management of wastes.

Waste management is the process by which products and by-products generated by business and

industry are collected, stored, transported, treated, disposed off, recycled or reused in an effort to

reduce their effect on human health. Therefore, a properly managed waste; that is well collected

and sorted recycled, treated, disposed off hygienically will promote a clean and safe environment

to live in. Waste management is practiced by small businesses when they collect and sort their

wastes, recycle their wastes, treat their wastes, dispose of their wastes or implement ways of

reducing their waste (EPA, 2008).


2.4 Global perspective about waste generation and management.

Headley (1998) states that in Barbados, there are no containers designated by municipalities or

collection companies to “set out” waste for collection; it is up to individual residences to

designate some sort of collection container. Frequently, these are plastic barrels or discarded oil

drums, however the majority of households simply place grocery bags full of waste on the street

to await collection. There may be physical dangers to waste workers in dealing with the former;

weather, animals, and other disturbances prior to collection threaten the integrity of the latter. In

an examination of current problems in Kenya, Mungai (1998) agreed that the first step in

“sanitary and efficient” waste management must be to ensure that all households use some form

of corrosion-resistant container with lids in order to facilitate collection. Lidded containers

would exclude most animal pests, reduce the amount of rainfall soaking into garbage and help to

reduce trash blowing about on the street.

A major problem is that of development at or on top of landfills; many shantytowns are built

from disposed-of waste and in some cases entire neighborhoods are sited on top of existing

landfills. For example, the Smoky Mountain dump in Manila, Philippines had as many as 10,000

families living in shacks on or adjacent to the dump site (UNEP 1996). Aside from the obvious

health implications, these concentrations of people further complicate transport and unloading

procedures and present numerous safety and logistical concerns (Blight and Mbande 1996).

UNEP estimates that approximately 100,000 people currently scavenge wastes at dump sites in

the Latin American region alone. Further, many people, not only those residing near landfills,

make their living from scavenging on solid waste before it enters the municipal waste stream.

Street-level waste picking often removes recyclables and other ‘high-value’ waste items from


items set out for collection; although these practices serve to reduce the overall quantity entering

the waste stream, these practices often scatter waste about, compounding problems for pick-up

and transfer operators (Pfammatter and Schertenleib 1996). Although it takes only 5-10 seconds

to empty a 45-gallon container of waste into a collection truck, but 1-2 minutes to shovel the

equivalent amount of waste (Gage 1998). Any potential change to the waste disposal framework

must take into account the urban poor, many of whom may be dependent on waste scavenging

for their entire subsistence. In one study at the Bisasar Road landfill in Durban, South Africa,

scavenging on waste supported 200 families, “earning” the equivalent of $15,500 per month, or

$77 per family per month (Johannessen 1999).

According to the 1999 State of the Environment Report for South Africa (DEAT, 1999), the

country generates over 42 million m3 of solid waste every year. This is about 0.7 kg per person

per day, which is more typical of developed countries than a developing country (by comparison

the figure in the UK is 0.73 kg, 0.87 kg in Singapore and 0.3 kg in Nepal). In addition, 5 million

m3 of hazardous waste is generated every year (DEAT, 1999). Every day 2.6 million of domestic

and commercial waste water is processed at treatment works. The last figure does not include

agricultural and some industrial waste, which are the largest sources of waste (DEAT, 1999).

2.5 Challenges met in waste Reduction at the Global level.
Until recently, the focus in South Africa for example; has been on waste disposal and impact

controls or "end of the pipe" treatment (DEAT, 2000). However, this focus has faced a number

of challenges and these include:

• Lack of waste avoidance, minimization and cleaner production technology initiatives;

• Lack of regulatory initiatives to manage waste minimization;


• Few incentives for reducing waste;

• Industries not required submitting plans for waste disposal when applying to establish new

enterprises;

• Inadequate resource recovery and a general lack of commitment to recycling – no legislation,

policy or waste management culture that promotes resource recovery or makes it financially

viable; and

• Lack of appropriate waste management strategies and treatment technologies associated with

these policies also have a negative effect on human health. In addition to lack of a variety of

appropriate waste treatment methods.

Some of the consequences of previous waste management policies include; continued air and

land pollution, the pollution of fresh and marine waters, resulting in the disruption of ecosystem

processes, habitat destruction and species loss. The amount of waste produced also places

increasing pressure on the country's landfills. Increasing amounts of land set aside for landfills

could lead to habitat destruction and species loss.

2.6 Some of interventions globally.
A mere 13% of American waste is recycled (Anonymous, 1992). Recycling is a resource

recovery program, which extends the globe's mineral supply by reducing the amount of virgin

materials that need to be removed from the globe to meet the demand. Resource recovery saves

energy, causes minimal pollution and land disruption, cuts waste disposal costs, and extends the

life of landfills by preventing waste from residing there.


The percentage of paper that is being recycled in other nations sends a clear message to

Americans: we are not doing enough. Americans only recycle 28% of the paper they use,

although they lead the world in paper consumption and paper waste. France, Sweden,

Switzerland and Finland recycle at least one-third of their paper expenditures. Japan, Mexico,

and the Netherlands are at a 44% rate, which is the highest in the world. The American federal

government alone uses two percent of all paper products in this country, but half of the trash it

throws away is paper (Miller, 1990).

Greatly increased recycling in this country could be reached through several measures. Some

analysts claim that 50% to 80% of the nation's natural resources could be recycled or reused by

the year 2012. Some measures to achieve this include enacting a national bottle bill into law,

banning disposable plastic items, requiring labels on products made with recyclable materials

and the percentages used, using education and advertisements to discourage the "throwaway"

mentality, requiring households to separate wastes for recycling (or offering financial incentives

for doing so), and decreasing subsidies for virgin-material industries, and providing subsidies for

secondary-material industries and waste reduction programs.

Anything that is naturally degradable can be thrown into a compost bin. Food and organic waste

created by food processing plants, kitchens, galleys, animal feedlots, yard work, and sewage

treatment plants. Paper, leaves, and grass clippings can be decomposed in this process in

backyard compost bins, and the end result can be used in gardens and flower beds.

Hazardous waste includes heavy metal contaminants (like lead and mercury), medical and

infectious waste, chemical waste, and nuclear waste. The latter is so dangerous due to the

extremely high toxicity, which remains that way for thousands of years. The technology for


safely and effectively treating and disposing hazardous waste has not even come close to the

technology for producing the stuff.

2.7 Uganda’s perspective on waste management
In Uganda, the public has not taken any positive steps in solid waste management practices like

source reduction, re-using, recycling or properly disposing of the portion that cannot be

reclaimed. Instead the public has for the most part maintained an “I don’t care” attitude of

generating as much waste as possible unconscious of the implications for its collection and

disposal (ERL 1990, KCC 1995 and NEMA 1996).

In Uganda, the solid waste generated comprises of 73% 0rganic waste; 5.3% paper; 1.7% saw

dust; 1.6% plastics; 3.1% metals; 0.9% glass; 8% tree cuttings and 5.5% street debris (Ngategize

et al., 2001). Kampala city gives a good illustration of this problem.

Since 1969, there has been a big increase in the volume of solid waste generated due to the rise

in population. In 1969, 198 metric tonnes were generated everyday and currently 800 tonnes

(800,000kgs) is being generated everyday according to the Kampala City Council (KCC report:

2008).

In addition to the above, waste generation is directly proportional to population increase. Even

though high/medium income earners are fewer than low income earners, and their per capita,

waste generated by low income earners is more than double the quantities generated by high

income earners. However, the daily and annual waste generation for low income earners is more

than double that for high income earners. This could be attributed to accumulation among low

income earners settlements due to inadequacies in waste collection services among others.


The greatest challenges facing Uganda’s rapidly growing urban centres, is the hazard of urban

waste, according to the Globe Clean Services, business manager, Rashid Magezi (cited in The

New Vision 3rd April 2010). He adds that, “The volume of solid waste generated in urban

centres in Uganda has been increasing mainly as a result of the growing urban population,

concentration of industries, consumption habits of residents, inadequate finance and facilities to

manage waste collection and disposal” Many Ugandans perceive waste collection as a luxury

but not a necessity. The concept of collecting garbage is still new to most people, since you have

to tell them a number of times before they can ingest the idea.

Magezi insists that garbage disposal in the urban areas is a real challenge compared to rural

Uganda where waste is mostly dumped in open places, gardens and open pits. In addition waste

in the rural areas is mostly organic.

2.8 What are the causes of poor Waste management in Uganda?
It is obvious to note that high-income households generate MORE wastes than low income

households but accumulation is higher in low income areas compared to high income settlements

due to availability of waste collection services. (ERL, 1990, KCC 1995, and NEMA, 1996).

Therefore, there are a number of causes of poor Waste management in Uganda and these include

but not limited to;

Lack of dumping sites where to deposit the solid waste. This is because the issue of waste

management is new in the country. It wasn't considered to be a problem before. Currently, in

Kampala, the dumping is done by the K.C.C. at Mpererwe, a landfill made in 1996 after the

former one at Lweza and Lubigi (ERL, 2008).


Ignorance of the masses about the need to dispose of these wastes well and how to dispose of

them (the wastes) off. There is lack of enough literacy programs on Waste management which

leaves most of the people backward on waste management. This is because of poor or no

sensitization of the masses by the government and other organizations of Uganda.

Inefficient collection methods which is mainly due to lack of funds to provide the necessary

machinery. In Uganda, machinery like the trucks that carry the waste from the various areas have

poor covering systems such that even the waste goes on leaking on the road while being

transported, and even there are few places with proper garbage containers or at times the

containers are over flooded when there are rain showers.

Poor government attitude towards waste management. From a citizen's point of view, it is

realized that very little money from the government is directed towards waste management, with

most of it going towards industrialization. This leads to poor purchase of collecting equipment.

Another cause is poverty that exists in Uganda. This undoubtedly leads to masses buying cheap

non bio-degradable containers which are not easy to dispose off, and also substitutes like paper

bags are not easily available to poor urban dwellers.

Also the low price of these solid wastes especially polythene bags which are very cheap as

compared to other containers makes them very common, which makes their proper disposal very

difficult.

Lack of trained manpower/personnel to deal with garbage collecting machinery and to ensure the

proper disposal of the solid waste for example door to door collectors in most advanced

countries.


Lack of recycling facilitates in most parts of the country for instance most of the polythene bags

used are not recycled by the manufacturing industries and Misallocation of funds and even

embezzlement of the little funds allocated for such work.

2. 9. Some of the human and environmental problems that can attribute to
poor waste management.

It should be noted that inadequate waste collection by the relevant authorities and the

inappropriate methods used by other generators leave a lot of solid waste unattended to. This is a

source of pollution and provides breeding ground for rats, fleas, mosquitoes among other. The

consequences of poor waste management are very complex (KCC; 2000). However, the major

impacts include but not limited to:

Infrastructure destruction; Solid waste haphazardly

dumped in manholes for drainage, telephone cables,

sewerage system, roadside drainage gutters creates blockages

and leads to floods across roads, streets, parks and other

spaces. The repair of underground telephone and electric cables is hampered as solid wastes

block manholes that would facilitate easy access. This makes repair works expensive and man

activities are disrupted because of constant service failures. The blockage of drainage channels

by mud, polythene and other solid wastes create pools of water, which render transport during

the rainy seasons messy and eventually potholes develop on the roads. (NEMA 2000/2001).

Contamination of water bodies: Most of the solid waste generated in Kampala is dumped in

the wetlands and these are the major sources of domestic water to Kampala’s population. Though

50% of Kampala’s populations have running water on the premises (Kampala 1995) and more


recent 2002 data indicates over 90% accessing safe water. Even then some pipes pass via solid

waste and sewerage sites and water is bound to get contaminated since most of the pipes are very

old. The concern for contamination is due to current accessibility to safe water with 36% of the

population drawing their water from “protected” spring, 11% from unprotected springs and 3%

from open courses with their waters from the wetlands and underground acquifers. (KCC; 2000).

These sources are contaminated through percolating leachates from decomposing garbage,

discarded oils from garages and some pit latrines in the low lying areas directly touch the water

table. Direct dumping is also evident on the shores of L. Victoria and its catchment region and

yet 3% of the population draws their water directly from open sources (LAVLAC 2005).

Generally Nakivubo swamp, which opens in L. Victoria, has a high nutrient load as a result of

rainfall run off from Kampala City (Kansime and Nalubega 1998).

Sanitation and Health: Open dumping is the order of the day in Kampala City and this has

created unsanitary conditions on streets and pathways. Such irresponsible dumping leads to

unpleasant smells and are fertile grounds for breeding sites for flies and other vectors. The

scenery of flies, rodents and vectors scrambling for the rotting solid waste is unsightly and

unhygienic. All this results in the pollution of both surface and ground water through leachate

and impairing the permeability of soils as well as blockage of drainage system (NEMA

2000/2001). The public is threatened by communicable diseases such as diarrhoea, cholera,

dysentery etc. Cases of cholera outbreak in Kampala are common, the most recent being early

2005. In a recent study of pollution load finding indicate high concentration of nitrates near

unofficial dumping grounds in the catchment of Natete River, (Lwasa, Majjaliwa et al. 2006).


This exacerbates environmental health problems in the urban poor settlements of Kampala metro

area.

Increased Presence of Garbage plastic mineral water bottles and Polythene Bags: Most low-

income settlements are littered with solid wastes and polythene

bags. The communities have been unable or unwilling to pay

for garbage collection and sanitation facilities. Some people

regard garbage collection as the responsibility of KCC using

money from taxes. The study has established that there is lack

of space to place garbage skips while landowners do not allow

placement of garbage skips on their land. Coupled with lack of skips and inability of the private

garbage collectors to cope with the generation rate, solid waste dumping sites are a common

feature in Kampala especially in wetland and high-density residential areas. Most conspicuous of

the waste stream is the plastic wastes in different categories from plastic bottles to polythene

bags which are carried downstream in the catchments by storm water and wind. These have

become a nuisance in the city and metro area.

It should be noted that the Government attempted to ban the polythene bags production one year

ago however, the government in its own way has failed to control the problem of poor polythene

waste disposal through its failure to enhance strict rules that can help reduce the problem. The

officials of the various government organs have failed to provide sufficient supervision of the

damping of the wastes as a result, polythene waste are continually poorly damped and this is

hazardous to the community and the people living around it.


2.10 Policy context/frameworks for waste management in Uganda,
International and regional levels.
There are various laws that regulate the generation and management of solid wastes in Uganda,

and internationally though some are out dated. They include;

Agenda 21 - program of action for sustainable development

Agenda 21 is a comprehensive blue print for global actions for sustainable development into the

21st century. Uganda being a member of the United Nations is party and accountable to Agenda

21. It commits governments, United Nations organizations, development agencies,

nongovernmental organizations and independent sector groups to implement programs and

actions which would halt and reverse the negative impact of human behavior on the physical

environment and promote and promote environmentally sustainable economic development in all

countries. In the context of waste management, Agenda 21 presents Section 21 on

environmentally sound management of solid waste, particularly highlighting program areas and

associated strategies to be implemented by all countries to ensure proper waste management

(Agenda 21, 1994). How this frame work has been implemented is a question of debate.

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)

Biodegradable solid waste decomposition generates green house gases (GHS) such as Methane

which contributes to depletion of the thin layer (Ozone) that protects the earth from direct heat

from the sun. Loss of this layer means that sun rays hit directly on the earth resulting in

temperature raises which influence climate on the earth and these changes have manifest as

global warming, prolonged droughts, and unreliable rainfall. However, Uganda is signatory to

the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) of the Kyoto


Protocol. The UNFCCC provides an international framework for mitigating causes of climate

change and its effects at both international and national level. For instance, the Clean

Development Mechanism (CDM) makes it possible for companies or countries that have to

reduce emissions under the Kyoto Protocol to invest in emission reduction projects in developing

countries. There is a need for exploring opportunities in the Clean Development Mechanism to

utilize the accumulated solid waste managed under the land fill at Kiteezi for energy production

Linking waste management to the Millennium Development goals (MDGs)

Uganda subscribes to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) of the United Nations

Charter. The targets under these eight goals respond to the world’s main development challenges

and are anticipated to be achieved by 2015. The MDGs are drawn from the actions and targets

contained in the Millennium Declaration that was adopted by 189 nations-and signed by 147

heads of state and governments during the UN Millennium Summit in September 2000.

Addressing the challenges of waste management and flood mitigation should be linked to the

MDGs because they directly and indirectly contribute to achievement of the targets under MDGs

1, 3, 6 and 7.

5

The constitution of the Republic of Uganda 1995 Article 245 (a) provides measures intended-

To protect and preserve the environment from abuse, pollution and degradation.” The National

Environment (Waste Management) Regulations, S.I. No 52/1999; Provides that all wastes shall

be properly managed among other regulatory frame works like The Local Government Act 1997.

The Town and country planning act 1964 provides a policy legal frame work against which

physical planning is done on urban settlements. It provides for the creation of Town and country


planning board, a body responsible for hand use planning approval and gazzetting structural

plans. However this law is out dated and in effective to enforce compliance and discipline and

this has greatly contributed to irresponsible littering of garbage.

By the year 2025, it is estimated that Uganda’s population will be about 54 million, with over

30% living in urban areas. It is therefore important that policies are designed to address potential

adverse effects. Since population increase is said to be one of the causes of rampant poor waste

management.

2.11 Opportunities from wastes.
It should be noted that though the word "waste" refers to something that is "no longer serving a

purpose", something "without value" (as the Concise Oxford Dictionary puts it), Obviously,

however, certain people in certain circumstances consider waste materials as a resource for their

family, their livelihood, or their enterprise. The so- called waste materials may serve as a crucial

resource within households. For example, oily milk packages may be used as fuel; leftover food

may be fed to pigs and goats; discarded cardboard may serve as walls and roofs of houses. If

that is the case, one can expect that household members re-value waste materials and see their

usefulness for different purposes, such as domestic utility, saving on household expenditures,

earning money, or other purposes (ERL, 2008). Therefore, this study was seeking to find out

whether the people in Kyazanga have some of these practices that serve to promote a clean and

safe environment.

2.12 Gaps identified
Although several researchers have carried out a number of studies on the causes of poor waste

management and have provided a number of solutions to waste management in different parts of


this Uganda and the world at large, it should noted with concern that most if not all these studies

have been carried out in big towns like Kampala, Masaka, jinja, Mbale Mbarara among others

and not in the small emerging towns like Kyazanga. Therefore, the Researcher carried this study

to validate whether such causes of poor waste management and their solutions are applicable to

Kyazanga Town council and establish Proposals for Change and Improvement in waste

management. (See the findings in Chpt 4).

2.13 Recommendation.
The inadequacies and inconsistencies in the Environmental policies in the context of waste

management at both national and local levels call for a comprehensive national policy to guide

and streamline waste management in Uganda. These processes should be initiated by the all

stakeholder in waste management sector.


CHAPTER THREE:

3.0 Methodology

3.1 Introduction

This chapter presents the methods and tools that were used to conduct this research. It specifies

the research strategy, sampling procedures, research instruments and data analysis techniques

that were used to explore the underlying causes of poor waste management and seek the local

people’s opinions on how the problem would be handled.

This chapter describes the methods and the procedures that were used to conduct the research. It

also describes the research design (Triangulation method) that is qualitative and quantitative

designs this is because there was a need to obtain a variety of information on the same issue, to

use the strength of each method to overcome the deficiencies that could come from using one

design and to achieve a higher degree of validity and reliability. Data was collected from two

main sources, primary and secondary. Primary sources of data comprised mainly interviews, and

use of questionnaires. Secondary data was collected from the already existing documents about

waste management at the Town Council.

3.2 Research design

The research strategy that the study utilized was the descriptive method. A descriptive research

intended to present facts concerning the nature and the status of the situation, as it exists at a time

of the study and to describe the present conditions, events or systems based on impressions or

reactions of the respondents of the research. This study was also concerned with the relationships


and practices that exist, beliefs and processes that are ongoing, effects that are being felt or

trends that are developing about poor waste management. The researcher used cross-section

study and triangulation methods (i.e. qualitative and quantitative designs). In this study, both

methods were be utilized for instance the qualitative opinions that were obtained were confirmed

by statistical data. Finally, the study used in-depth interviews, observations (qualitative) as well

as survey and statistical records like graphs, pie-charts and tables (Quantitative).

3.3 Area and population of Study.

The study was conducted in Kyazanga Town council, Lwengo district one of the newly created

district formerly part of Masaka district. It is one of town councils that form Lwengo district. It is

located in the approximately 96 miles (154km) and 46 km from Masaka along Masaka –

Mbarara Road and 10 km from Lwengo district headquarters. The Town council has a total

population of about 15832 of whom 4625 are female, 4432 are male and 6775 are children

between 0-18 years. The 2002 Uganda national census estimated the population of Lwengo

District at about 242,300. The exact population of the district as of December 2010 is not known.

The Population in Kyazanga is mixed with different tribes ranging from Banyankole-Bakiga,

Bafumbira, Banyarwanda and Baganda. The main activity of the people in Kyazanga T.C is

business- (small scale business); while other people are peasants who go to the nearby village for

farming since this is the main source of food and livelihood survival. The Town Council houses

the only Health centre IV in the district and most of the educational institutions.

The nature and the characteristics of the Population in Kyazanga (mixed) and the nature of the

activities (small scale business) can be attributed to poor waste management in the area, where a

lot of waste is generated through their retail businesses.


3.4 Sample size estimation.

The sample size comprised of 76 respondents (local people- considering a number of issues like

residential, business-small or high etc) from different Wards of Kyazanga T.C, 10 education

institutions, 4 health centres/clinics and 10 the Local leaders a total of 100 respondents was

selected from the four zones of Bukyanagandi, Kanakulya Byuma, central and Maida.

3.5 Sampling procedure and sampling techniques.

The researcher used a non probability sampling procedure where purposive and quota sampling

techniques were employed. This was because, in purposive/judgmental sampling, the researcher

purposively chose respondents who, in his opinion, were thought to be relevant to the research

topic. In this case the researcher was convinced that his judgment was more important than

obtaining a probability sample because the problem of waste management is not a new

phenomena therefore, to obtain relevant data, one must choose relevant respondents. Whereas in

quota sampling instead of dividing the population into strata and randomly choosing of

respondents, the researcher chose to set a ‘quota’ of respondents to be chosen in specific

population groups, by defining the basis of choice ( gender, education, status, wealth etc) and

this still was used in determining size.

3.6. Data collection techniques.

The researcher used both qualitative and quantitative methods of data collection because

qualitative methods involve the use of words rather than numbers; the methods involved

descriptions of the study and this helped the researchers to go beyond conceptions and generate

and revise frameworks. This approach helped the researcher to generate quality information that


gave meaning to numbers. While quantitative methods involved the collection of numerical data

in order to explain, predict and control phenomena of interest and the data that was collected is

presented as a table in numbers. The numerical data obtained is used to explain the social life of

the people of Kyazanga in relation to waste management. These methods included,

administering questionnaire, interviewing and observation.

3.7. 0 Tools to be used in research

3.7.1 Questionnaires

The questionnaire comprised of sections like; the demography where the respondent’s sex,

marital status, income level, type of apartment-rental or owned among others were asked. They

also consisted of questions both open and closed in which if answered well, would have

exhausted the research objectives and question. In this method of data collection, the respondents

got and filled in a formerly well structured questionnaire. These questionnaires were home/office

delivered. The questionnaires were personally delivered to and later picked from the premises of

the respondent. The respondents were given time to fill in the questionnaires. The researcher

believes that this method gave the respondents enough time to reflect, concentrate and in some

instances to consult. However, to the semi- literate respondents, the questions were read by the

researcher and then translated into local languages for clear understanding and proper responses.

3.7.2 The interview guide

The researcher conducted personal interviews especially to key informants like the Town Clerk,

chair person LC III and the Health Inspector. The Researcher also introduced himself to the

respondents by presenting an introductory letter from the university. The Interviewer then

precisely explained the purpose of the carrying out the study on the causes of poor waste


management in Kyazanga T.C. The researcher went ahead to explain how the potential

respondents were selected and that the responses were to be confidential and anonymous, which

could not be used against the respondent. It was made clear to the respondents that the interviews

were not testing knowledge but rather helping the researcher to learn from them. While

interviewing, the researcher was guided by a well structured set of questions which worked as a

interview guide.

3.7.3 Observation and a camera.

This is “a purposive or intentional examination of something, particularly for purposes of data

gathering”. (Chaplain 1968). The researcher used observation method where the occurrences of

poor waste management events were highly recorded. The researcher used tools like a camera to

take pictures of wastes littered anyhow in the Town council.

3.7.4 Secondary data.

This is the use of the already collected data that was not specifically gathered for the research

question at hand. This data could be government or non-governmental or private statistics. The

researcher had anticipated to get information relevant to the study by reviewing documents about

waste management; these documents included, the publications, annual reports of the ministry of

health, periodicals, journals, magazines and other literature written by different knowledgeable

scholar. The researcher hoped that such information would help as the starting point for

additional research. Unfortunately, the T.C has got only a work plan pamphlet which was

compiled in 2009. This is the only working, and guiding document the TC owns which has half a

page information on waste management. This partly explains why this study was conducted in

order to provide information for the leaders and the entire community.


3.8 Procedure for Data Collection.

Both open-ended and closed-ended questionnaires were also used for data collection. Mostly

closed-ended questionnaires were used to collect easily analyzable data. Interview guides were

designed and reviewed by the researcher. A set of question were prepared for reference by the

researcher and were approved by the research supervisor. The researcher pre-tested the

questionnaire before he finally put to use.

After the approval of the research proposal, the researcher identified two Research Assistants

(R.As) with a bias in social research who were oriented on this research and trained in

interviewing; data collection and data coding skills and then pre tested the questionnaires.

At this point it was important to prepare a plan for data processing and data analysis based on

which aspects of data collected was to generate qualitative and quantitative analyzable data.

After scheduling the meeting with respondents, the research team started with in-depth personal

interviews each lasted for 10-15 minutes. During all these sessions, the researcher was the

moderator while one of the R.As was taking down notes and the whole team carefully listened

and observed the conversations.

3.9.0 Data Quality Control.

Data safeguarding and ensuring the accuracy and completeness of the same quality control

comprises of validity of the instrument that used in the study. This was maintained through tests

of validity and reliability.


3.9.1 Validity.

Validity in this case refers to the appropriateness, meangfulness and usefulness of the

inferences/deductions a researcher makes (fraenkel & Wallen 1996:153). In order to establish

validity of the instruments, the draft questionnaire was given to the supervisor and academic

colleagues and experts. They were requested to comment on the question wording and the depth

of the questionnaire and its ability to address the research objectives (relevancy). The comments

that were obtained helped to improve on the research instrument.

3.9.2 Reliability.

Reliability refers to the consistency of the responses obtained from one administration of an

instrument to another and from one set of items to another (Fraenkel & Wallen 1996:160). To

ensure consistence of the research instrument, the researcher used simple language and clear

instructions which were quite appropriate to the respondents. Instructions were made as simple

and clear as possible. Questions were phrased clearly to ensure consistence in responses of the

participants. The respondents who participated in the study were expected to be knowledgeable

to provide reliable information. The selected sample was adequate and representative. After all

that, the instrument were pre-tested in a pilot study and the researcher pre-tested a minimum of

10 questionnaires. The researcher did that in instances where he was not sure about the adequacy

of the optional response categories that had been devised for one question, for instance questions

that had options like ‘Others, please specify’, the researcher’s concern was be that the response

set to that question might not be effective; as a result the option ‘Others, please specify’ might

attract a disproportionally large number of responses, a problem the researcher wished to avoid.

The results of the pre-testing brought on board very important modifications in the questionnaire.


These tests were carried out to ensure consistency and to find out how easy the final study would

be done.

3.10 Research Formalities.

The research procedure began by getting introduction letter from the University which was

presented by the researcher to the authorities in Kyazanga to be allowed to access secondary

data, reports and carry out research in the areas. And in return, the Town Clerk replied by writing

an acceptance letter to the Researcher.(see Appendix)

3.11 Data Analysis and interpretation.

It should be noted that, data obtained from the field in raw form is difficult to interpret. The

initial data collected was subjected to quality checks, to ensure that the recordings were correctly

done with minimal errors. This entailed editing, repeating interviews where necessary, coding,

summarizing, categorizing and grouping similar information, analyzing according to the theme

of the study. The researcher deemed it important to note quotations and observations made

during the interviews and their sources or the name of the interviewee. All the questionnaires

were analyzed whether completed or not.

Data analysis and processing was on-going and statistical analysis was done manually and where

possible the researcher used Microsoft Excel Spreadsheets, and frequencies of the emerging

issues were then established in a tabular or graphic form like pie-chats, bar graph and frequencies

and percentages were generated. (See Chpt 4).

Care was taken to avoid discarding any data, as this could be reverted to in later analysis.

Relevant quotations were ear-marked. Analysis was done manually as earlier mentioned by


identifying areas of emphasis according to themes and the responses summarized in a narrative

form as a presentation of the major findings of the study.

At the end of it all, it was from the results of analysis that the researcher was able to make sense

of the data in order to give concrete interpretation and discussion of the data obtained in relation

to phenomenon of poor waste management.

3.12 Limitations of the study and possible way forward.

The study was comprehensive and the researcher used considerable finances to execute the study

successfully. However, despite the envisaged limitations of logistical and financial difficulties,

the researcher endeavored to get the required resources to complete the study within the required

time frame.

The researcher found some respondents who were not willing to cooperate in giving out

information concerning poor waste management claiming I was T.C staffs who was disguising to

be a researcher instead looking for information to pin them for poor waste management.

However, the researcher tried to build a rapport first which helped in building a strong bond with

the respondents which later enabled him to get the required information.

Time factor; this was one of the greatest challenge the researcher faced during the research.

There was limited time for the researcher to go the field, make introductions, carry out research,

collect data, interpret the findings and then write a scholar report.


3.13 Dissemination of the results.

Once this copy of the research is approved, the researcher will distribute the findings to the areas

/ offices that were helpful during data collection exercise. For instance, Town council offices and

the council Health inspect, to enable them update their information and to discover the gaps in

the policy about waste management. The university will retain a copy of approved dissertation

for academic reference and the researcher will retain a copy.

3.14 Ethical consideration

 The researcher sought permission from the local council leaders in order to allow him

collect data

 He deemed it necessary not include the names of the respondents on the questionnaires.

 The researcher explained the purpose of research to the respondents

3.15 Conclusion.

All in all, the chapter shows the methodological framework that guided the researcher in the

collection and analysis of data acquired from the different study respondents.It shows the

various data collection techniques that were employed to enable the researcher to get all the

required information that was needed for this research. It brouht out the particular category of

people that were involved in this research and why they were picked upon.


CHAPTER FOUR

4.0 DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS

4.1 Introduction

In this chapter, the researcher presents the findings of the study conducted on waste

management within urban areas in Uganda; a case study of Kyazanga town council, Lwengo

district. The findings are presented using tables, bar graphs and pie charts, which are later

analyzed by percentages under some of the variables. Most of the findings are descriptive in

nature.

4.2. Back ground Characteristics of Respondents

4.2.1. Sex of the respondents.

The researcher considered the sex of the respondent because he wanted to study the variations in

the views and perceptions and the role played by both men and women regarding waste

management.

Table 1: Sex of the Respondents
Sex Frequency Percentage

Female 51 51%

Male 49 49%

Total 100 100%


Figure 1: Distribution of respondents by sex.

Respondents by sex

52%
%ges 51%
50% Percentage
49%
48%
Female Male
sex

The findings presented in table 1 above show that, out of the total sample size of 100 respondents

contacted during the study, 51% were females and 49% males. Findings specifically revealed

that the women were more engaged in waste management issues than the men. This was because

most households that were interviewed, husbands would ask their wives to respond to the

researcher than themselves claiming the wives were more engaged than themselves and that the

women had more of the domestic responsibilities to handle compared to men. And therefore,

women were found to be more engaged in waste management than men and possibly this

explains the burdens women carry on top of the domestic role they play. It was found out that

since waste management was a new phenomenon, women (who in this case are the most

responsible) tend to give waste management the last priority hence poor waste management in

the Town Council.

4.2. 2: Distribution of individual respondents by the zone.

With the guide of the local leaders we were to identify four zones which include; Bukyanagandi,

Kanakulya Byuma, Maida and central zones from the total number of Twelve (12) zones.

Bukyanagandi, Kanakulya Byuma and Mayida zones were selected because they have more


residential people and a lot of illegal waste

dumping in more observed than any other zone

while Central zone is known for being the hub of

business in the Town council.

Health centres and schools visited are spread

throughout different zones that were selected. It

should be noted that Kyazanga being one of the

growing Town Councils, a lot is needed especially planning for infrastructure developments ob.

It was observed by the researcher that there is no single zone that is said to be residential or

business oriented. All zones have people doing small scale business (Retail shops) and

Residential. However, zones like Central accommodates more people in business than any other

zone. It was therefore; found out that these zones due to their large numbers alongside poor

building plans explain why a lot of waste is choking the Town Council.

Table 2: The distribution of respondents by zones.
Zone Frequency Percentages

Central 32 32%

Bukyanagandi 30 30%

Kanakulya 24 24%

Byuma

Maida 14 14%

Total 100 100%


Figure 2: The pie-chart showing the distribution of the respondents by zone.

From above, central zone had the highest number of respondents with 32% because it has the

highest number of residents in business sector and an area that generates a lot of garbage that is

indiscriminately littered anywhere. The study also selected Bukyanagandi, Kanakulya Byunma

and Maida Zones with 30%, 24% and 14% respectively. These zones were selected because they

have the highest dilapidated structures and this go hand in hand with waste management. Such

zones can afford of wastes as a challenge to their health. On top of the above, these zones have

the highest open dumping spaces. Approximately, ¾ of the apartments selected were either

dumping wastes behind the shelter or in any open place. The current situation in conjunction

with the attitude of the people if not handled carefully and strongly, these zones could be a

source of diseases that can be spread to other zones.


4.2.3: The income level category.

The researcher had interest in the income level category of the people of Kyazanga in order to

draw relationship between wealth/income and waste management. There were three categories of

income that the researcher observed i.e. low income, middle income and high income.

Table 3. The distribution of the respondents as per the income category.
Income level Frequency
Low 50
Middle 30
High 20
Total 100

Figure 3: Income levels of Respondents.
Income levels of respondents

50
40
Low
No. of 30 Middle
Respondents 20 High
10
0
Frequency

From the graph above, half of the total number of respondents was under low income category

representing 50%. Majority of these respondents said that because of using cheap non bio-

degradable containers which are not easy to dispose off, like ‘Buveera’. The alternatives that

should have been used like paper bags are not easily available to poor urban dwellers. Even

when some of the alternatives are available, the prices of these solid wastes especially polythene

bags are low compared to other containers which makes their proper disposal very difficult. To


the middle and high income apartments, a lot is also generated by relatively managed and

collected by the Volunteer Youth Group. It is important to observe at this point that the role

played by the service providers should be cross cutting NOT segregate as it is. It was reported

that poor households were NOT receiving any service from the Team at all.

4.2.4 Category of the premise of collection.

This study considered two major categories of apartments/premises. These included basically

residential and business sector. The researcher found out that at a household level all sorts of

wastes are generated and so is the case for the business sector. The business sector includes

people engaged in retail and wholesale shops, stalls of green vegetables, and restaurants. The

researcher included this section of premise of collection for a number of reasons; one was to

establish the source of the wastes that are choking the T.C, are the major generators, if there any

means used to collect, transport and dispose off.

a). The residential premises.

The table below shows the number of respondents under Residential premises in relation to their

income level.

Table 4 (a). Premise of collection
Residential premise Frequency Percentage ( %)
a) Low Income 25 50%
b) Middle 15 30%
income
c) High Income 10 20%
Total 50 100%


Figure 4 (a):Distributions of respondents at the residential level in relation to
income levels.

Residental Respondents

60%
50%
Respondents
Percentage of

40%
30% Percentage ( %)
20%
10%
0%
Low Income Middle High Income
income
Income level

The findings in table 4 above indicate that a total number of 50 respondents were interviewed.

Low income household since they are the majority had 50% representation, 30% for middle

income and 20% for high income.

b). The business sector.

Table 4 (b). distribution of respondents in the business sector as per
their income level.
Business

Low Income 25 50%

Middle income 15 30%

High Income 10 20%

Total 50 100%


Figure 4 (b). Respondents from the Business sector.

Respondents from the Business sector

30 60%

Respondents in
25 50%
Respondents

Percentage
20 40%
No. of

15 30%
10 20%
5 10%
0 0%
Low Income Middle income High Income
Income level

No. of Respondents Percentage

The findings in table 4 (b) above, it is indicated that still a total number of 50 respondents were

interviewed in the business sector. The researcher drew respondents from different income levels

in order to study the variations in the opinions about waste management in the TC. Low income

business dealers formed 50% representation, 30% for middle income and 20% for high income

as it was the case in the residential respondents. It can be observed that in both categories of

respondents i.e. residential and business, the low income people are the majority. The question

then is; does the level of income determine the waste management in TC? This question is to be

answered in the following analysis.

4.2. 5: Position of the respondents in the apartment.

The research chose this demographic characteristic of respondents in order establish who plays a

bigger role in waste management at both house hold level or at a business establishment.


Table 5: distribution of respondents by positions.
Residential level No. of respondents Percentage (%)
Spouse of the Head of 41 40
establishment/House wives
Owners /Heads 51 52
Employees/ Care takers 8 8
Total 100 100

Figure 5: Distribution of respondents by positions held in the establishment.

The position of each respondent was taken to be a very important demographic variable for the

study because these position influences one’s ability to engage in an activity that is

environmental friendly or not. As seen in the table above, 41% of people were Spouses of the

Head of establishment/House wives, 51% of the respondents were heads/owners of the

apartments compared to 8% of the employees/care takers.

4.2.6: Education levels

The researcher considered education as a very important demographic characteristic during

which people not only get to know about themselves but also what happens around them. It was


believed by the researcher that people who have had an opportunity to know the dangers of poor

waste management are better placed to manage wastes either by having a collection container or

having an alternative way of managing wastes properly. Respondents were classified into four

education levels of education including No formal education, primary, secondary, and tertiary

(University).

Table 6. Education levels of the Respondents
Education Level Frequency Percentage (%)
Non formal 53 53
Primary 21 21
Secondary 19 19
Tertiary (University) 7 7
Total 100 100

Figure 6. Distribution of respondents according to their levels of Education.

Respondents by education level
No. of Respondents

60 60%
50 50%
Percentage

40 40% Frequency
30 30%
20 20% Percentage
10 10%
0 0%
(University)
Secondary
Primary
Non formal

Tertiary

Education level

From table 6, indicates that the majority of the respondents had not attained formal education

(53%). Those who had attained primary education were 21%. Respondents with secondary

education level were 19% and those with tertiary and university education were only 7%. The

higher percentage of respondents with Non-Formal education level was expected since they form


the highest percentage in the area and probably this explains why the issues of waste

management are lagging behind in Kyazanga Town Council. The researcher noticed during this

study that because of the low levels of education, most of such respondents had no idea about the

legal and institutional frame works in place. In other words lack of information goes hand in

hand with the level of education.

It should be noted with concern that the level of education forms the basis of waste management.

It was found out that low levels of education contributes to poor waste management mechanisms

while high level of education contribute positively towards waste management. Therefore, the

researcher deemed it was necessary to include this demographic characteristic while assessing

the persistent causes of waste management.

4.2.7: Time spent in KTC. (How long have you stayed in Kyazanga).

Majority of the respondents especially in the residential apartments have stayed in Kyazanga for

a period ranging from three years and above. Meaning there are those who have been in the area

for more than forty years and others for the whole of their lives. On the side of those engaged in

business, there are those who have just stayed in Kyazanga for a year while others have been

their for a long period of time and this became very hard for the researcher to generalise since

some respondents were born in the area and they are now engaged in business. The researcher

chose to use the time spent in Kyazanga because it would help to explain whether the

respondents knew the stages the area had gone through from a hunting and grazing area to

trading centre to Town Board and finally to Town Council. Of course each of these levels have a

role to play on waste management.

Does such a population structure and settlement pattern explain why waste management is poor

in the area? To some extent yes; the researcher found out that because people have spent a long


period of time in the area, it becomes hard for local leaders to enforce the laws/ordinances on

waste management because most the people are closely related families. It was suggested that to

succeed in executing duties pertaining waste management, a civil servant who is not born in the

area would be better placed.

4.3: Is waste management a problem?

The researcher included this question in order to know how establish whether the residents of

Kyazanga could notice that poor waste management was a problem. The respondents were from

residential, Business sector, Health centres and schools. In all these apartments, the respondents

admitted that waste management is a problem and they argued that the problem, was very serious

as the population continues to grow.

Table 6: distribution of responses on whether waste management was a
problem.
Respondents Frequency Percentage (%) Responses

Low Income 50 50% Yes

Middle income 30 30% Yes

High Income 20 20% Some how

Total 100 100%


Figure 7: Responses on whether waste management was a problem.

Responses on problem of waste mgt

60%
50%
40%
30% Percentage (%)
20%
10%
0%
Yes Yes Some how
Low Income Middle income High Income
Income level

From the figure (7) above, 50% of the respondents were under low income category said that

waste management was indeed a threat and their response to the question was yes. This was the

same case with the middle income which was represented by 30%. Unlike the two, the high

income respondents did not look at waste management as a problem because most of their time,

they are enclosed in their perimeter block with full water tanks, gas cylinders or charcoal and

they could afford to pay a person to collect their wastes at least three times a week and these

comprised of 20% .

4.8. What form of wastes is commonly generated in the apartments?

Most respondents generated wastes that included; organic waste like kitchen waste, vegetables,

flowers, leaves, fruits and non organic wastes like plastics, polythene bags, paper, glass, and

metals. It was found out that in a week, the residential respondents approximately generated

between 8-10 kg of wastes. While the people engaged in business generate between 10-20kgs.


This poses a great challenge when it comes to waste management. There is no proper means of

collecting, transporting and disposal of such wastes.

4.9. Does your house hold have a container?

The respondents were asked whether they had containers where wastes were being collected

from and the responses varied as follow.

Table 8: distribution of responses on the question whether the
respondents had a container.
Respondents Frequency Percentage (%) Responses
Low Income 50 50% No
Middle income 30 30% Yes
High Income 20 20% Yes
Total 100 100%

Figure 8: Distribution of Responses on whether Premises had containers

Responses on the availability of the container

20% Yes 50% No
Low Income
30% yes Middle income
High Income


Findings presented in table 8, generally shows that most of the respondents who participated in

this study had no containers or anything they used to store in their collected waste at a household

level/premises and this took the largest percentage of 50%. Findings also revealed however that a

significant percentage of the respondents (30%) had where to store the accumulated waste but

not a proper waste container. The 30% used polythene bags, sacks and other materials. These

would at times tire or break before disposed off. And the rest of the respondents 20% had

containers where they would store their wastes until the volunteer group comes for collection.

The study further revealed that majority of the respondents who never had containers were the

low income earners. While conducting the study, it was observed that such house holds were

either throwing wastes behind the house or in an open space. And this poses a health threat

especially when it rains. To the respondents who are high income earners, they at least had

polythene bags, sacks, metallic containers among other ways. One would be able to tell a

difference between such house holds and those of the low income earners. However, much as

these house holds could afford to have collection containers and have the volunteer group collect

wastes, it revealed that there was no proper ways of disposing off these wastes.

Source: field data

The researcher on his further investigation into the matter observed that whereas some business

respondents, at least had; a metallic container, polythene bags or the bucket where they would


keep their wastes and that this limited the littering of such wastes with in the apartments. Most of

these wastes would be found in water channel, along the road, in open spaces, in corridors as

seen in the pictures above.

4.10. Who provided the container that was used on your premises?

In order to establish the source of the container, the respondents were asked who provided the

container that was used in the premises. Findings from this question are presented in table 9

below.

Table 9: distribution of responses on who provided the container
Category of Frequency of Percentage of Responses
respondents respondents respondents
Middle 30 60 Self

High 20 40 Self

Total 50 100%

Figure 9: distribution of responses on who provided the container.
Percentage of respondents

60

40
60
50
40
30 Percentage of respondents
20
10
0
self self

Middle High


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