This study was conducted to map flood inundation areas along the Manafwa River, Eastern Uganda using HECRAS integrated with the SWAT model. The study mainly sought to evaluate the predictive capacity of SWAT by comparisons with streamflow observations and to derive, using HECRAS, the flood inundation maps. Changes in Land-use/cover showed by decrease in forest areas and wetlands, and conversions into farmlands and built-up areas from 1995 to 2017 have resulted in increased annual surface runoff, sediment yield, and water yield. Flood frequency analysis for 100-, 50-, 10-, and 5-year return periods estimated peak flows of 794, 738, 638, and 510 m³/s, respectively, and total inundated areas of 129, 111, 101, and 94 km², respectively. Hazard classification of flood extent indicated that built-up areas and commercial farmlands are highly vulnerable, subsistence farmlands are moderately to highly vulnerable, and bushland, grassland, tropical high forest, woodland, and wetland areas are very low to moderately vulnerable to flooding. Results demonstrated the usefulness of combined modeling systems in predicting the extent of flood inundation, and the developed flood risk maps will enable the policy makers to mainstream flood hazard assessment in the planning and development process for mitigating flood hazards.

The impact of floods on households in Uganda is becoming increasingly severe. It is often assumed that people who reside in a riverine area have adapted to flood pulses. However, in most cases, household-level risk reduction strategies are inadequate for ensuring a livelihood resilient to floods. The objective of this study was to investigate the determinants of households' decisions on coping strategies in the Manafwa catchment, Eastern Uganda. The study was based on a field survey of 210 households supplemented with focused group discussions (6) and key informant interviews (4) conducted in the Butaleja district in March 2019. The study used the protection motivation theory framework and applied the multivariate probit model. The most common short-term coping strategy was building temporary embankments (37%), whereas afforestation (44%) was the most common long-term solution deployed. The determinants that consistently and significantly influenced the choice of coping strategies adopted were: family size, number of adult males in the family, location of the house within the floodplain and time of residence in the affected area (P > 0.05). For policy purposes, this study recommends that the relevant stakeholder interventions should consider these determinants, in order to enhance the adaptive capacity of rural households to flooding.