Uganda’s economy is based on agriculture and nature tourism. National investments and policies promote these sectors; however, policies also give rise to development that impairs biodiversity and threatens the resilience of ecosystems to support sustainable economic activities. There is a widespread conversion of wild habitat to other uses that impact bees and other insects that are key pollinators. Studies from other areas of the world document how insect pollinators are essential to maintain plant communities in natural ecosystems that support diverse animal populations. Little is known about Uganda’s bee fauna and the plant-pollinator interactions essential to ecosystem function. Pollinator information in Uganda is limited and scattered and there is no biodiversity information portal that is accessible to diverse users, e.g. policymakers and others outside of academia. Makerere University aims to solve this problem by creating a new, public, web-based database to mobilize pollinator information. This data portal will be complemented by the generation of new data products to serve different end-user needs, a bee identification guide, and outreach activities and materials. Collectively, these activities and products will increase knowledge and create awareness of bee pollinator diversity, distribution, and contribution to farming in Uganda.

1. Enable access to biodiversity data through the development and launch of a database-driven website on bees of Uganda and related pollination information.
2. Expand the knowledge base on bee pollinators by engaging farmers and government agencies, conducting field surveys and sampling events to collect specimens.
3. Analysis of datasets with a focus on bee diversity, determinants of distribution, and bee-plant mutualisms in agricultural landscapes of the Southern Kyoga Basin and Central Lake Victoria Crescent.
4. Enhance capacity at Makerere University through the development of a bee genera of Uganda identification guide and training in bee identification skills and biodiversity informatics applications.

Increase end-user awareness about the roles and value of pollination in agriculture and biodiversity conservation. Outreach activities will target both technical and non-academic audiences and include scientific conferences, public seminars, pollination exhibitions, and a policy dialogue workshop.

With COVID-19 restricting travel and meeting with our grantees, JRS invited our projects to submit a short update for the JRS Board of Trustees. Though intended for an internal JRS audience, we loved these videos and share them here with permission. Enjoy!

1. A public web-enabled database on bee pollinators in Uganda, to include 500 initial data records and web content that includes species information and educational materials covering 40 genera.
2. 8,000 field-collected bee specimens identified to species level, placed in a bee reference collection at the Zoology museum, digitized, and published to GBIF.
3. A national checklist of bees.
4. Published material including technical reports, two scientific bulletins, three articles in press, and two theses submitted by the end of the project.
5. A Lucid Key to bee genera of Uganda that provides users with a web-based, interactive, and illustrated identification guide.
6. Outreach materials targeting a technical audience and a non-academic audience. Outreach materials include a pollination documentary, posters, factsheets, policy briefs, and technical reports.

This project aims to increase the quantity, quality, and accessibility of data on bee pollinators in Uganda. The web-enabled database will provide access to species occurrence data and other information on pollinators, bringing together existing resources and new expertise and products. This will fill in data and accessibility gaps and build taxonomic capacity for current and future research. Makerere University expects this system to serve as a key tool and resource for stakeholders in sustainable agriculture and biodiversity conservation, and a model for the development of other web-based data portals in the East African region. This project will enhance biodiversity informatics capacity in Uganda and spread awareness of the role of pollinators in food production and environmental resilience, with the ultimate goal of creating a community of pollination advocates and demand for pollinator information.

Dr. Anne M. Akol is an Associate Professor with the Department of Zoology, Entomology, and Fisheries Sciences at Makerere University. She holds a MPhil degree in Applied Biology, a PhD degree in Agricultural Entomology, and claims 18 peer-reviewed scientific publications in pest management and insect ecology. She has also implemented a number of multi-institutional and regional projects, including a JRS-funded project awarded in 2017 to assess Lepidoptera pollinators’ diversity in East Africa.

This award to Makerere University developed through a successful partnership with the National Museums of Kenya and the project there “Assessment of Lepidoptera Pollinator Species Diversity in East Africa” directed by Dr. Esther Kioko.  That project helped to build the lepidopteran collection and data at Makerere and to support Dr. Akol’s group to enhance their expertise in virtual and physical collections management.  This project should help develop additional baseline data on Uganda’s pollinators and a digital repository for future data.  The biodiversity informatics landscape in Uganda is complex and under development. We are hopeful that the National Biodiversity Data Bank at Makerere University may bring its data online in the next year.  That development, the GEF-UNEP supported Connect project and other JRS Biodiversity Foundation investments may serve to link informatics efforts in Uganda and to support a stronger Ugandan GBIF node. Very encouraging!