Karenga Community Wildlife Management Area (KCWMA) is one of the few Conservation Areas within North-eastern Uganda (the Karamoja sub-region to be precise within Kaabong district) and is part of the Kidepo Conservation Zone.
Popular for the East Sudanian Savannah Biome, Karenga Community Wildlife Management Area was gazetted in 2002, covers an area of over 956 square kilometers (369 square miles) and is within the Northern Acacia-Commiphora bushlands and thickets ecosystem, thus being part of the famous Kidepo Valley National Park critical scenery. Therefore, the common wildlife species to be spotted within this Protected Area include leopards, giant forest hogs, warthogs, cheetahs, giraffes, over 2000 elephants, antelopes such as bushbucks, Topis, Uganda Kobs and waterbucks, buffaloes, primates such as blue monkeys and vervet monkeys among others.
Even with its beauty and numerous attractions, Karenga Community Wildlife Management Area is still faced with a number of challenges that include lake of enough infrastructures such as accommodation facilities for eco-tourists willing to explore its attractions, high rates of wildlife poaching, encroachment for agriculture, livestock rearing and settlement, and finally the unsustainable use of natural resources through activities such as charcoal burning and bush clearing among others.
Even with its beauty and numerous wildlife and bird species, Karenga Community Wildlife Management Area (KCWMA) still lacks accommodation facilities thus most tourists who visit the Wildlife Reserve have to book for a place to stay from as far as Kaabong or Moroto district thus few tourists would want to bother visiting it. This is probably one of the reasons it receives fewer visitors.
Karenga Community Wildlife Management Area is however faced with a number of other challenges that include encroachment on the Wildlife Reserve by corrupt Government Officials and local residents as well as hunting/poaching on the wild animals thus reducing on their numbers/populations and undermines tourism activities.
Besides Karenga Community Wildlife Management Area (KCWMA), Uganda is a home to more than 10 wildlife Reserves that include Ajai game Reserve, Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary, Kigezi Mountain Wildlife Reserve, Bugungu Game Reserve, Pian Upe, Bokora Corridor game Reserve, Kabwoya Wildlife Reserve, Katonga Wildlife Reserve, Matheniko Game Reserve, Toro-Semliki Game Reserve, Karuma Wildlife Reserve and many others.