Govt to resettle 4,000 households

Government is set to resettle 4,000 households living in landslide-prone areas in Bugisu Sub-region. 

The households in the districts of Bududa, Manafwa, Sironko, and Namisindwa will each be given Shs7 million in two instalments for resettlement. 

The cash payout, totalling about $8.47m (about Shs32 billion), is set to kick off in October and will be completed by March 2023. 

The programme dubbed Cash transfers to support households in the Elgon Sub-region, is being implemented by the government in partnership with GiveDirectly, an international non-profit organisation. 

During the launch of the programme at Bushika playground in Bududa District at the weekend, Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja said: “The NRM government is committed to ensuring that our people are secured from the disasters of landslides in the region.” 

She blamed the continuous occurrence of the disasters in the area on human activities which she said have destroyed the environment. 

“The mountain slopes have been left bare and naked due to over cultivation and search for timber and firewood. The vegetation cover has been depleted and terraces have been removed,” she said, adding that there is a need to protect the environment and restore the forest cover.

The prime minister further said the government has allocated Shs2.1 billion to construct another 60 houses at Bunambutye Resettlement camp in Bulambuli District where some of the victims of environmental disasters in the area will be resettled. 

The Bududa District Woman MP, Ms Agnes Nandutu, said there is a need to promote urbanisation so that people will be encouraged to move away from landslide-prone areas to settle in safer locations. 

The Manafwa District Woman MP, Ms Mary Goretti Kitutu, applauded the government for the quick intervention to rescue people from landslide-prone areas. 

At least 100 families in Namarango Village, Bubiita Sub-county, where a three-kilometre crack running through several villages to River Tsume developed, have been displaced. 

The Bududa District chairperson, Mr Milton Kamoti, said the district experiences high rainfall of above 1,500mm. 

“There is high precipitation and surface runoff which leads to landslides and flush floods given the nature of the topography and hilly terrain,” he said. 

The country director of GiveDirectly, Mr Ivan Ntwali, said: “Our desire for the people still living in high-risk areas is to use this opportunity to move and invest in their livelihoods in safer areas.”

He added that the organisation would continue to raise funds  for  disaster-affected areas.