CiVoRiDe PROJECT TIMELY FOR HUMAN AND LAND RIGHTS IN KOBOKO-WEST NILE REGION

(Photo  taken By Charlotte Taremwa CEGED)

By Charlotte Taremwa (CEGED)

Center for Governance and economic Development (CEGED) in partnership with Rural Initiative for community Empowerment (RICE) West Nile, two sub-Regional organizations are to implement a 24 months project entitled Citizens Voice for Economic Rights and Development (CiVoRiDe) in the districts of Arua, Koboko and Nebbi.

CiVoRiDe project has been conceived to address the economic marginalization and imbalances of the voiceless youth, People With Disabilities (PWDs),  Adolescent mothers and women sexual minorities who are excluded from economic development equation in Uganda by bringing them to the decision making table and their voices heard.

Statistics show that although Uganda has posted an economic growth, in particular, of the 89% population employed in the Agricultural sector, where majority of youth and women are engaged largely in subsistence activities are faced with peculiar constraints that prevent them from achieving high levels of productivity, including limited access to government entrepreneurship funds and linking with growing economic markets.

To overcome this challenge Government of Uganda has introduced entrepreneurship funds intended to uplift youth and women out of poverty. However, due to the high level of exclusion of the unemployed youth, landless women (especially widows) and teenage mothers and people living with disabilities (PWDs) have not benefited from such opportunities. This has been attributed to lack of platforms for poor and marginalized youth and women to influence mandated government institutions and leaders and their voices heard.

For example youth have faced challenges with the Youth Livelihood Program because of having to compulsory choose among the Operation Wealth Creation agricultural projects that have long term crops like coffee, oranges, mangoes and the like. The project aims at bridging the gap between stake holders by amplifying voices of the youth to be heard on issues challenging them.

 “The national management OWC told us to tell the youth to select according to what the government is providing but the youth want to grow cabbage and tomatoes” Hon. Todoko Isaac from the Local Government said at the CiVoRiDe inception meeting Koboko district.

CiVoRiDe project’s objective is to enhance governance and management of land-tenure and resolution of land conflicts affecting 55 rural women led producer groups in districts of Nebbi, Arua, Koboko West Nile region by 2018 and improvement in  reporting and response by local authorities to cases of land tenure related land conflicts by end of 2018.

The women Lands Rights Committees (LRCs) will act as reporting channels in ensuring of land conflict and benefits sharing with associated Social Related Gender Based Violence (SRGBV) faced by women, reported and then forwarded to the next level of authority for action by establishing the Women LRCs. The project also aims to address the barriers of information flow by rural women of reporting land conflicts and gender based violence happening in the community.

In order to give voice to the women facing Sexual Related Gender Based Violence (SRGBV) from land conflict and land rights violation, dialogue will be organized on a bi-annual basis in each district. During the dialogues, rights holder will be able to identify their own vulnerable situation in the context of lack of access to services or lack of response and protection in the context of poor women powerless to act to change their situation.

The project will support selected women farmers groups leader and LRCs to attend the districts will to attend and respond to the issues presented by women. By so doing the women LRCs will effectively use their civic engagement space to voice their issues and establish themselves as champions for women Land Rights.

Goro Grace, working with the district local government also questioned the system of elders saying they have become liars by selling land to many people. She commended that the project will help women to understand the systems on land rights and have their voices heard on land matters

In koboko district, the voice project received a round of applause for its timeliness in the district. The land rights are at stake because tradition versus the law on acquiring land.

Nithro Francis, a police officer at Koboko Central Police Station says, “The elders these days smoke opium and weed with the youth and even go with them to the discos. They are not helping anymore. In the past, elders had great influence in marking boundaries and solving conflicts peacefully. Women too deserve to have a share on their fathers land just as the males.”

The project will also hold sub-county meetings to constitute women Land Rights Committees (LRCs) 10 members representing each women groups will first be oriented on the project purpose and secondly to take stock of land rights conflict affecting women and compile a status report. Thirdly the participants will nominate members to constitute the Land Rights Committees composed of 5 members who act as representatives of the targeted 55 women farmers groups. 

Going forward, the project is coming in to engage legal aids, policy makers to amplify the voice of 68 rural youth and 55 women groups by giving them a platform share their challenges to influence pro-poor youth government entrepreneurship funds to become responsive and inclusive by 2018.

The marginalized groups of people have a right to freedom of speech and expression despite their circumstances, their voices matter too. CiVoRiDe project is here for equal rights and justice for the marginalized groups to minimize their vulnerability and pave way for development in the West Nile Region.