Kampala — UGANDA'S demographic scale is changing with more than 1.2 million people living in Kampala alone.

According to the state of environment report for Uganda 2008, the population increased from 4.8 million in 1948 to 30 million in 2008.

It is projected to hit 103.2 million by 2050. At 3.2% growth rate, it is one of the highest in the world.

At this rate, this puts Uganda in third position in the world after the Niger and Yemen, a situation that creates challenges the country's capacity to plan and ensure efficient, equitable and productive use of natural resources that does not strain the environment.

However, growth is not necessarily a bad thing.

"People are critical asset in development because they provide labour and transport, market and sell raw materials as well as consume the products of their labour," the environmental report analyses.

President Yoweri Museveni's statement on World Population Day 2008 indicated that a high population is not a problem in itself but rather an asset that can be used to transform the economy.

However, the report warns that the rapid expansion of the population allowed little time to plan for their accommodation, jobs, social amenities and infrastructure.

The problem is not growth, but unplanned growth. "A healthy and well planned population is at the centre of sustainable development in Uganda," the Uganda Bureau of Statistics 2003 report points out.

"Demographic indicators like the birth rate, death rate, age composition, spatial distribution and migration patterns are closely related to and are affected by socio-economic characteristics like employment, occupation, education and health."

A large population requires more key services including sanitation, housing, transport, energy, education, employment and clothing, among others.

"The pressures on land, water, forests and biological resources have dramatically increased to meet the needs of the growing population," states the report.

"For instance the rapid population growth, coupled with freehold tenancy land policy has predisposed rural areas to land fragmentation, increased intensity of land use to maintain income levels and subsequently lowered individual incomes due to reduced farmlands."

Individuals and communities have as a result been forced to encroach on forests, wetlands, riverbanks, lakeshores, and game reserves, creating undesired and unsustainable land use patterns that negatively affect the environment and natural resource.

"The current rate of population growth in Uganda is too high to ensure sustainable use of the environment and natural resources," says the report.

Population structure and migration patterns, driven by social and political factors, are closely linked to inequality and poverty, and these conditions also influence the environment.

They define production and consumptions patterns, and the manner in which natural resources are used.

Government needs to invest in the people to guarantee that everybody can participate in the economy, increase their productivity and enhance their competitiveness.