The government has renewed plans to relocate thousands of households living in landslide-prone areas of the Mount Elgon sub-region. The exercise is expected to cost over 198. billion shillings. The Minister for ICT and National Guidance, Justine Kasule Lumumba, said on Tuesday that Cabinet had approved 8.87 billion shillings to purchase 2,217.66 acres of land for the first phase of the relocation programme.
The land will accommodate 1,423 households identified as being at the highest risk, particularly those living in areas where cracks have already appeared and which authorities have mapped as vulnerable to mudslides and landslides. She said Cabinet was subsequently presented with an alternative strategy, leading to the approval of the new land acquisition plan.
Under the arrangement, each beneficiary household will choose between receiving two acres of land, valued at 4 million shillings per acre, and ten 10 million shillings for construction of a house, or receiving 8 million shillings in cash instead of land, plus ten million shillings for construction.
However, the initial phase will cover only a fraction of the households identified as being at risk.
Lumumba said10,558 additional households remain in high-risk areas and will require an estimated Shs190 billion for resettlement. She said that cabinet has directed that the money be sought through a supplementary budget.
The latest commitment brings the proposed expenditure under the new phase to nearly Shs199 billion, on top of previous government allocations towards the same problem.
Government’s relocation programme dates back to the devastating landslides that hit the Elgon region, particularly the 2010 Nametsi disaster in Bududa, which killed hundreds of people and displaced thousands.
Following the disaster, the government embarked on plans to move vulnerable communities from the slopes of Mount Elgon and established a resettlement site at Bunambutye in Bulambuli District.
However, relocation has been slow, with land acquisition, funding, disputes over land ownership and resistance to leaving ancestral land contributing to delays. The government has continued to announce fresh interventions whenever landslides strike the region.
The Office of the Prime Minister said in 2025 that the government intended to resettle 12,031 households across seven districts in the Elgon sub-region and estimated that about 28,000 acres of land would be required. The government has also previously used cash transfers to encourage households to leave landslide-prone areas.
In 2024, selected beneficiaries in Bududa received cash to facilitate voluntary relocation, while the government continued searching for suitable land for a larger-scale resettlement programme.
Some families at previous resettlement sites have also complained about delays in receiving land and other promised support.
However, under the latest arrangement, beneficiaries who receive resettlement support will be required to hand over their existing land to government. Lumumba said the surrendered land will become part of land managed by the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA).
The Office of the Prime Minister will work with local governments, the Internal Security Organisation and Parish Development Model structures to monitor implementation and the use of the funds.
The arrangement is intended to prevent beneficiaries from returning to the same high-risk areas after receiving relocation support.
The latest intervention comes amid questions over why thousands of families remain exposed to landslides despite repeated government commitments, budget allocations and previous attempts to establish resettlement areas in safer locations. It also comes at a time when the government has communicated El Niño alerts to the country-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
