By Mulengera Reporters
Barely months after taking over the helm of the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA), Executive Director Dr. James Musinguzi is sending a strong message to wildlife traffickers, with the authority taking custody of nearly nine tonnes of wildlife contraband seized over the past 15 years.
The massive stockpile, weighing 8,857.84 kilogrammes, was officially handed over by Aviation Police to UWA on Friday following an extensive inventory and verification exercise conducted at Entebbe International Airport.
The contraband, recovered through anti-wildlife trafficking operations between 2011 and 2025, includes tonnes of ivory, pangolin scales, rhino horns, hippopotamus teeth, lion teeth, skins, ostrich eggshells and other protected wildlife products.
The handover marks one of the largest transfers of wildlife exhibits in recent years and underscores Uganda’s continued efforts to crack down on illegal wildlife trade networks operating across the region.
Representing the Commandant of Aviation Police, Irene Mugoya said the exhibits were recovered through joint operations involving Aviation Police, UWA and other security agencies.
She revealed that traffickers had become increasingly sophisticated, with some wildlife products concealed in containers labelled as shea butter in an attempt to evade detection at the airport.
Mugoya noted that enhanced security measures and improved intelligence gathering had significantly reduced wildlife trafficking cases through Entebbe International Airport in recent years.
According to Aviation Police records, the exhibits remained in police custody for years as investigations and court processes relating to various cases continued.
However, growing storage challenges eventually prompted police to request UWA to take over custody of the exhibits.
Receiving the stockpile on behalf of Executive Director James Musinguzi, UWA Assistant Commissioner for Law Enforcement and Operations Margaret Kasumba said the authority had received a total of 8,857.84 kilogrammes of confiscated wildlife products.
Data from the inventory exercise shows that ivory accounted for the largest share of the haul, with authorities recovering 6,421.64 kilogrammes of raw ivory and 275.53 kilogrammes of processed ivory, bringing the total ivory seizure to 6,697.17 kilogrammes.
The stockpile also included 1,980.2 kilogrammes of pangolin scales, 48 rhino horns weighing 111.75 kilogrammes, and 14 hippopotamus teeth weighing 12.6 kilogrammes.
Kasumba commended Aviation Police for preserving the exhibits for more than a decade and ensuring their integrity throughout the investigative process.
She said UWA had verified every item using its digital wildlife products management system, which records photographs, measurements and unique identification features of each exhibit.
The seizure highlights the scale of wildlife trafficking that Uganda continues to confront and signals a tougher enforcement approach under Musinguzi’s leadership as authorities intensify efforts to dismantle international trafficking syndicates targeting the country’s wildlife resources. (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
