AMURU MP RALLIES LOCALS TO REGISTER THEIR LAND.

By

ABALO IRENE OTTO

Kilak South MP Gilbert Olanya today asked the people of Amuru district to register their land in a wake of multiple land conflicts in the district among families, clans and state agencies, communities and investors. Olanya was addressing the media today in Gulu town as part of the Land Awareness Week in Amuru that seeks to engage the community in knowing their land rights.

The event is organized by the Ministry of Lands Housing and Urban Development in Amuru Sub County in Amuru district in the 12 parishes of Atoro, Bana, Layima, Lajalula, Pamuca, Lakang, Kololo, Ngiy, Labongogali, Layamu, and Ayila.

The Land Awareness Week on the theme “Together we protect our land,” is to conduct open public sensitization at parish levels, music exhibition on land rights, and media engagement through radio talk shows and mobile legal clinics to contain the situation in Amuru.

Olanya says that Amuru has endless land conflicts because of the vast unregistered land that the district possesses.

“If you go to the ministry of land, on the map of Amuru district, it shows that the land is vacant. That is why anybody will go to the ministry of Land and identify the area then come on the ground then start processing the land title minus the community knowing how they got their document.”

Olanya says the major problem the community has is ignorance of how to have documents for their land. In the ministry of Lands, Omer a parish in Amuru Sub County is vacant land yet the community are settled in the area.

“That is why we are mobilizing people in Amuru, let each and every family in Amuru start documenting there land. The world is modernizing so rapidly and if you insist on customary ownership, you will be left out automatically without your land.” Olanya added.

A team of ten lawyers have been hired to offer their services for free to sensitize the community and also tell them the rightful procedures of acquiring the land.

Participatory Ecological Land Use Management, PELUM Uganda, the NGO at the forefront of organizing the event in partnership with Amuru district Local Government, Eastern and Southern Africa Farmers Forum, ESAFF, Action Aid, International Justice Mission Acholi Religious Leaders Peace Initiative, ARLPI and The Legal Aid Service Providers Network, LASPNET among others.

Moses Otim, a project coordinator with PELUM Uganda, says they hope to strengthen roles and coordination of various stake holders and document issues for proactive move on land matters.

“Amuru has always been reported as a hotbed for land wrangles. We know people want to settle in the fertile land in Amuru. We want people to know their land rights and use it to protect their true land.” Says Otim.

One of the most contested land in Kololo in Amuru sub county is the over 10,000 hectares of land that Madivani wants to grow sugar cane in that affects less than 20 individuals but compensation costs about 20 billion shillings.

Otim adds that the land conflict is hindering productive use of land to benefit the community that is still recoverying from the over two decade’s insurgency.

According to reports from Amuru police, 90% of cases reported are land related.

 

 

 

 

 

Apaa, the land of honey and edible rats

By

Abalo Irene Otto

The word ‘‘Apaa’’ to many in northern Uganda and beyond is associated with conflict over land and the dramatic 2015 incident in which a group of elderly women undressed before two ministers and a host of other government officials.

The women were protesting what they termed the ‘‘grabbing of their land.’’ Apaa is claimed by both Amuru and Adjumani district. Amuru is occupied by the Acholi while the Madi is occupied by the Madi. The conflict threatened to pit the two tribes against each other.

But how would the people of Apaa want to be known by those outside of Apaa?

Last week I and two colleagues on the Voices for Peace radio programme, a production of the Northern Uganda Media Club (NUMEC) with support from USAID- SAFE, set out to Apaa to speak to locals and find out how they would want to be known.

The interviews from Apaa will result into the production of a 20 minutes broadcast—Voices for Peace radio—which broadcasts on five Gulu-based radio stations reaching listeners in Apaa.

We set off from NUMEC for the two hours’ drive to Apaa. The road between Lamogi and Labongogali was a rough ride but as we branched off to Okungedi, it turned out to be a smooth ride on a straight road that looked recently graded leaving a cloud of dust behind as the Boda boda and other road users struggled to move to their various directions on the about 2.5 meter width of the road. This is the only road that leads to Adjumani district. As we entered Apaa, just about five hundred meters away from the busy center, a hunter emerged from the bush with a beaming smile and a fat edible rat, a local delicacy, dangling in his one hand and a spear in the other. Standing akimbo, the hunter waved at us invitingly

“Hello,’’ he said ‘‘This one is only 20,000 shillings. It is my best for today, can you take it. You will enjoy.”

The hunter, we learnt is Simon Komakech, a resident of Omer Junction in Apaa parish. Komakech is a senior four dropout of Pabbo secondary school. On a good day he gets 50,000 shillings from selling edible rats and squirrels, he told us.

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Komakech is also a subsistence farmer planting simsim and cassava to provide for his old mother who can no longer afford to pay him in school (How old is Komakech?)

“My parents are now old and cannot afford to take me back to school. I do this[hunting] to make  some money and to care for the family,’’ he said adding ‘‘But life here is good because I can make money any time I want as long as I can get into the bush to hunt.”

For those who have never been to Apaa, Komakech says it’s a land of honey and edible rats.

In Apaa trading centre we found vegetable seller Apiyo Nancy from Lulayi East that borders Adjumani district. Apiyo told the Voices for Peace team that she is engaged in agriculture—planting cassava, simsim, maize and groundnuts.

The proceeds from her garden helps her send her four children to the local school. She, however, wants the Amuru district authorities to construct roads and bridges to enable easy access to school by children during the rainy season.

In the heart of Apaa trading centre, we met Okot Atanasio from Goro B. Okot is Chairman of the business community in Apaa.

“The Madi people come here to trade with us and we get goods from them as well. We have no problem. We are living peacefully,’’ said Okot Atanasio. ‘‘We want the government to bring for us social amenities like schools and hospitals so that we can live healthy and develop our land.”

Grace Anek lives 12kms away from Apaa trading centre. She had travelled to the market in Apaa to sell her sorghum. Anek has a son. She wants him to be a doctor. She appealed to the government to construct schools in Apaa. Apaa Parish in Amuru district has 24 community schools without any government aided primary school.

Although it shot to limelight because of a land conflict that led to the undressing of women, Apaa is like any other rural Ugandan village in which the locals are engaged in agriculture; want social services like schools, hospitals and good roads. Apaa residents also inter depend on other neighboring communities like the Madi sharing markets and selling produce from the two communities.

Edited by

Moses Odokonyero

Other relater story

http://numec.ug/apaa-the-land-of-honey-and-edible-rats/

Residents demand for opening of tank at stalled fish fry project site.

By

Abalo Irene Otto

The LC1 of Ariaga Laliya in Laroo division has today expressed his disappointment with the district over the non-functionality of Laliya Fish Fry center that was established in 2008 to aid research on aquaculture in Northern Uganda.

Charles Oling told Radio Rupiny that the Fish Fry centre has been nonfunctional and the reserve tank that was dug at the beginning of the project is holding the water that used to help residents in his area for both domestic and agricultural use during the dry season.

Oling says the area has been deserted with no activity going on for the last nine years and asked the district to open the reserve tank to help his people with water during this dry spell instead of leaving the place redundant.

” Before the construction of this reserve tank which is even non functional, we used to have water running down this stream to help our community but now the reserve tank is holding water which is making people in my area suffer from lack of water.We don’t see the use of this redundant facility, let the district tell us what is going on or open the tank so that people can use the water like before.”

John Peter Lanek told Radio Rupiny that as a district, they have no capacity to continue with the stalled work at Laliya fishFry Centre but have written to the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industries and Fisheries, MAIF awaiting feedback on the way forward.

” The fry centre is not functioning at the moment because the work is still incomplete. This is a project of the central government that we have no capacity to work on. We have written to the ministry and still waiting to hear from them.”

Laliya Fish fry center has 24 fish ponds that were dug at the beginning of the project and other equipment worth billions of shillings that have been lying redundant for over nine years.

Investors constructing roads to ease access.

By

Abalo Irene Otto

Investors in Nwoya district are appreciating the challenges that the communities in areas where they operate go through by working on some of the issues that affect them as well in running their farms.

Rigil Agrotech Limited and Amatheon Agri both in Lungulu Sub County are ensuring that roads are worked on so that they can easily transport their equipment and produce.

Richard Mugarura, a constructor at Rigil Agrotech Limited, a commercial farm growing cotton and other ceareals like green grams and soya beans in Alingiri village told Radio Rupiny that when they started work on the farm last year, the roads were impassible as they try to bring equipment on the farm from Gulu, the main town in the region.

He adds that the company thought it wise to construct roads that would help the community as well to have easy access to other areas especially during the rainy season.

Cue in ……………Mugarura on bad raods…………..

The LCI of Alingiri village in Nyamukino Parish Lungulu sub county, David Aranya says the presence of the investors is being appreciated by the community through the services that they offer which had been a challenge accessing through the local government structures.

Aranya says he has signed an agreement with one of the companies, Rigil Agrotech to construct a17km stretch of road to join where Amatheon ended.

Cue in………………… Aranya on roads……………..

Nyamukino parish has five major commercial farmers that include, Amatheon Agri, Rigil Agro Tech, Gulu timberland among others owned by individuals.

LC1 Sleeps in the bush due to land wrangle

By

Abalo Irene Otto

The LC1 of Amar Kalac village, Amar Parish, Koch Goma Sub County in Nwoya district is leaving under fear for his after continuous threats by unknown persons to end his life.

Richard Odongkara the area LC1 has been sleeping in the bush for over one month since the land wrangle over the land which has Amar Centre was established.

The chairman claims that whenever he reports threats to his life to the police, his statements are squashed and he believes there is a plot to eliminate him because the land in question belongs to his late father and he knows the boundary.

Cue in………. Odongkara on threats to his life……………………

The land wrangle is between one Martin Ojul who claims the center is in their ancestral land that was given out in the 1930s by their grandfather. The 260 acre piece of land in Amar center that was given by family member to individual developers who have established businesses in their land.

Meanwhile, in the same village, Amar Lakalac, a land wrangle over a 70 acre piece of land has left children of the occupants in a desolate situation by their relatives.

Harriet Aciro, a 22 year old woman says she has failed to live home and marry because of the way her father is being mistreated by her relatives over land and they stopped going to school because her father could not farm to get money for paying their school fees.

She told Radio Rupiny that her family has split because of land wrangles and as children, they are confused and do not have where to run to for help.

Cue in ………….Aciro on land wrangles…………………..

Northern Uganda has experienced a wave of conflicts over land since the resettlement period in 2006 with a number of actors and stake holders like Africa Community Development Network and ZOA among others operating in Nwoya district.

 

Gender Based Violence on the rise during festive seasons

By

Abalo Irene Otto

Domestic violence in the community is expected to rise this festive
season according to police and non-governmental organizations working
on Gender Based Violence.

According to Action Aid that runs a GBV shelter in Amuru to help
survivors, majority of domestic violence cases are recorded during and
after the harvest seasons in December and January that fall in the
annual festive season.

Josephine Laker, Action Aid Project Officer, Amuru GBV shelter told
URN today that they receive about 300 cases of domestic violence every
month due to disagreements on right to crop produce.

Cue in ……..Josephine on Domestic Violence………………

34 year old Agenorwot Agnes of Pagak Parish in Amuru district shared
with URN her experience of domestic violence that occurs during the
festive season.

Cue in………..Agnes on GBV experience…………………….

Martin Okoyo, Gulu PDC told our reporter in an interview in Gulu town
that Gulu district equally registers high rates of domestic violence
during the festive season.

Cue in …..DPC Okoyo on domestic violence…………..

Josephine Laker advises that couples should engage in mediations and
discussions to end domestic violence in the community in order to
enjoy a peaceful festive season.

Cue in………. Josephine on mediation……..

According to Justice and reconciliation Project, there is an increase
in domestic violence due to poverty, alcoholism and other war related
factors. Survivors of GBV encounter violence in their marriages and
are stigmatized by co-wives, in-laws and even husbands.

Locals should protect shear butter trees says environment minister

The Minister of State for environment has said that there is need for concerted efforts to protect and preserve shear butter trees and Elephants that are facing a threat of extinction and yet they are source of income to the nation in terms of tourism and the oil from the shear tree is healthy for human consumption.

Hon Flavia Namugera, decried the massive environmental degradation and encroachment that has led to crimes of about 213 billion per year attributed to illegal wild life trade.

The minister told reporters from Gulu town recently that Northern and North Eastern Uganda must emphasis on the protection of specifically shear butter trees and elephants to save them from extinction and stop conflict between the environment and humans.

She says Shea trees should be protected from harvest in many places by local and state regulations, because they are classified as vulnerable, due to threats from timber and fuel harvest, as well as increasing agricultural encroachment.

According to the Shear Project an NGO working to conserve shear butter trees in the districts of northern and eastern Uganda, the shear-butter tree is the most conspicuous of the useful trees conserved when clearing land for cultivation. In traditional farming systems, the shear tree grows with millet, sorghum, pigeon pea, cotton, cowpeas, beans, cassava and even banana.

Protection of young shear trees is the most critical issue in the regenerative stability of the agro-ecosystem, as the developing tree can remain less than a meter in height for several years, and does not become productive (useful) until its 15th or 20th year. The wood of the shear tree is heavy, strong and termite resistant. It also makes excellent charcoal making it a target for the businessmen to that effect.

” We shall prosecute those who sabotage government programme,” says Operation Wealth Creation Coordinator.

Twelve sub counties in Gulu district received another batch of 35,000 citrus seedlings through the Operation Wealth Creation Programme that is currently being handled by the Uganda People’s Defence Forces who replaced the district NAADS coordinators nationwide.

The citrus seedlings were supplied by a company called Elosmos Agri Service Limited.

According to Major Benny Odong, the Operation Wealth Creation Coordinator for Omoro County, follow ups will be made through the local leaders in the areas where the seedlings were supplied to ensure that government resources are not wasted by un serious people.

He adds that much as people are cooperating and planting the seedlings that they get, those who shall be got keeping the seedlings to dry without planting shall be arrested and prosecuted for sabotaging government progeammes.

Major Odong says upon inspection, only 1,000 seedlings were given for Gulu Municipal Council because there are smaller gardens within that do not need many seedlings.

Other sub counties received 2,833 Citrus seedlings each. They are: Aswa, Omoro, Lakwana, Tochi, Awach, Paicho, Palaro, Bungatira, Unyama, Lalogi, Odek, Patiko, Koro, Bobi and Ongako.

Gulu receives citrus seedlings under Operation wealth creation programme.

Gulu receives citrus seedlings under Operation wealth creation programme.

By

Abalo Irene Otto

Gulu

Gulu district farmers are to receive 90,428 citrus/ orange seedlings under the operation wealth creation initiative by the government of Uganda.

On Wednesday,the district received the first batch of supplies to be distributed in the sub counties of Bungatira, Patiko and Palaro with each sub county getting 5,000 budded Citrus seedlings for the selected farmers.

According to Col Acoka Francis Ongom, the Zonal Coordinator for the Operation Wealth creation Programme in Northern Uganda, the seedlings will be enough for the farmers since their more supplies and it will be continues during the rainy season.

“The farmers should not worry because the seedlings will be enough. We shall continue to get more supplies and give to the farmers to help them turn away from subsistence farming to commercial.”

Col Acoka say farmers need to observe good agronomic practices as they were taught by the district before the seed are given to them for their own benefit at household levels.

“Practice good agronomic skills that you were taught so that the seedlings do no die. We are giving the seedlings at the onset of the rainy season so that we do not receive complains of seedlings dying because they were given to people late.” Said Col Acoka.

Operation Wealth creation budget was increased from 203 billion last year to 1 trillion this year.

The program aims to distribute seeds to farmers to eradicate poverty such as maize and fruit trees like citrus/ oranges, mangoes and coffee seedlings.

Meanwhile,Gulu municipality is to miss out on Operation wealth creation programme that is meant to elevate farmers from subsistence to commercial agriculture to eradicate poverty at household levels due to mishandling of the seedlings.

Col Francis Acoka Ongom, the Zonal Coordinator for the Operation Wealth creation Programme in Northern Uganda, told our reporter today that they are continuing to give farmers the seedlings but those in the municipality will not get because they do not have were to plant and in most cases when given, such farmers end up selling or they just leave the seedlings that could have been planted by others to dry.

Col Acoka says the seedlings will be given according to the size and number of people in each of the parishes in the district.

The sub-county receives and stores the seedlings before distribution to the individual farmers who will each get at least 122 seedlings for an acre ready for planting.

According to Titi Paul, the Accountant in charge of the district stores, 1,000 citrus out of the 90,428 given to the district will be given to veterans and some selected women groups will also benefit from the programme as long as they are registered with the sub county chiefs.

Today, Bungatira, Patiko and Palaro are receiving 5,000 budded citrus seedlings each for planting this rainy season. A farmer is given the seedlings after inspection and seeing that they have ready garden for planting.

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AMURU ON THE RACE TO IMPROVE LIVELIHOODS

World food programme in Partnership with Action Against Hunger is supporting 34 small holder farmer groups in Amuru and Lamogi sub counties in Amuru district to empower the farmers to demand for better prices for their agricultural produce.

Through their programme, dubbed Purchase for Progress(P4P), about 640 farmers have been brought together to Operate a store constructed in 2010 by Action Against hunger ,ACF, that handles the produce after harvest to avoid cases of arson or huts being burnt with produce inside that previously made farmers sweat at a loss.

Darius Arach, the community Facilitator for Action Against hunger (ACT), a partner working together with World Food Programme while in an interview with our reporter explained that the groups have been trained on a number of improved agricultural practices and post-harvest handling to have clean produce that can fetch higher prices at the market.

“We have also trained them on how to handle money because we realized that most of them did not have a saving culture and their spending habits were poor such that they sell everything in the house and use it up all within a short time and the whole family suffers at the end.”

He says the 34 groups were given among others tricycle to ferry their produce to the store and motorized maize Shellers to maintain the quality to meet the standard at the market.

The groups also sensitize other community members through drama on the how to improve their household incomes through saving in the bank, sales, Local Village saving schemes, handling money among others.

“The groups are also using drama to teach others on banking, sales and the right post harvest handling to keep the harvest clean and ready for better prices. It is easier for farmers to negotiate for better prices when the quality of the produce is superb,” Darius commented.

Christine Anek, the Vice Chairperson Lamogi WanenoAnyim Association, a local farmer group started in 2007 with about 600 members says that Word Food Programme and ACF constructed for them the store that they are using to keep their produce after harvest.

She says on average, an individual brings about 4-5 bags about 3 tons of produce after harvest and gets between 500,000/= to 700,000/= depending on the crop; maize, ground nuts, sunflower or soya beans that has greatly improved their livelihoods.

“I can now pay school fees for my four children and provide basic needs for my family with the money I get after the produce are sold. I encourage other women to also join us or form their groups so that they are supported and are able to fend for their families instead of depending on their husbands for everything in the home.”

However, amid the progress made, Anek says they still have challenges in transporting their produce from the various villages to the store for marketing due to bad roads and the unreliable rainfall that leads to poor harvest.

“Sometimes one can get only 100,000/= during a bad season. We need more training to empower us on how to handle such challenges as farmers,” said Anek while in an interview with our reporter From Amuru sub county.

Apiyo Josephine, the Coordinator Gender Based Violence Shelter, Amuru says the district has developed “Amuru Common Woman Manifesto” that is aimed at empowering especially the women economically in their agricultural activities to be able to support their households since they have a greater burden to take care of activities in the home.

She also appealed to the district authorities to lobby and open avenues for banks to open their branches in the area so that people can save and also borrow loans to improve their productivity.

Amuru district currently has no bank for farmers and the rest of the community to carry out their commercial transactions.