Uganda begins Shs62b resettlement of 13,000 landslide-risk households in Bugisu
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Uganda will start relocating households from landslide-prone areas of the Bugisu sub-region on 21 October, offering each affected family a one-off Shs18 million package to buy land elsewhere.
Uganda will begin relocating thousands of households living in landslide-prone areas of the Bugisu sub-region from 21 October 2026, following a directive issued by President Yoweri Museveni, the Daily Monitor reported.
The directive followed a 5 October Cabinet meeting at State House, Entebbe, where ministers resolved to offer each affected household a one-off cash resettlement package of Shs18 million to move to safer locations. Implementation details were finalised at an emergency meeting convened by Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja in Kampala with Cabinet ministers and members of Parliament from the sub-region.
Nabbanja said the money is meant to enable displaced residents to buy land in safer parts of Bugisu or elsewhere in the country. She said the programme continued a resettlement effort running since 2010, under which 1,100 households have so far been resettled on more than 2,250 acres acquired by government in Kiryandongo District, Bunambutye in Bulambuli, and Kween District.
Assessments by the Ministry of Relief, Disaster Preparedness and Refugees show that more than 13,000 households currently live in high-risk zones on the slopes of Mount Elgon. Government has allocated Shs62 billion for the exercise, which Relief Minister Sam Engola said would begin in Namisindwa District, prioritising the most vulnerable and previously unmapped high-risk areas.
Engola said beneficiary households are encouraged to vacate immediately after receiving the package, and that their houses will be demolished by the Uganda Wildlife Authority in collaboration with other security agencies. Beneficiaries have a grace period until 31 December 2026 to harvest crops left on the vacated land.
Tourism, Wildlife and Antiquities Minister Tom Butime said land vacated by the families will be taken over by the Uganda Wildlife Authority for integration into the Mount Elgon National Park conservation area. Ministers, local MPs and the implementation team will conduct physical verification through community barazas and local radio to prevent fraud, while Bugisu lawmakers welcomed the cash payout model, saying previous government-led land acquisitions had been slow and often faced opposition.