United Nations
Development Programme

Plot 15B Clement Hill Road

P.O Box 7184

Kampala, Uganda

Tel: (256) 414-233440/1/2/5

Fax: (256) 414-344801

Email: registry.ug@undp.org

UNDP’s support to quick impact labour-based projects in the areas of eastern Uganda that were affected by floods in the later half of 2007 is paying off. One of the products of this support, the rehabilitated Magoro-Ngariam road in Katakwi district, was officially handed over to the district local government on 7 February.

Katakwi is one of the six districts in eastern Uganda’s Teso sub-region that was severely affected by floods. When UNDP, together with the French Embassy and UN-HABITAT, conducted a rapid assessment of the floods in Teso last October, the findings were disturbing. The floods had severely affected livelihoods and infrastructure throughout the region. In Katakwi district for instance, only 15% of roads in were accessible, while all bridges had been washed away. As much as 80% of the crop due for harvesting had been destroyed, 75% of the water sources were contaminated, houses had collapsed, prices of goods and services had doubled, fuel costs had gone up by 50%, and transport fares had quadrupled. The livelihood of half of the population of this district and more than 30% in Amuria and Bukedea districts had been terribly affected.

One of the significant impacts of the floods on the communities and their ability to respond to and recover from the crisis was the damage to road infrastructure, particularly the Magoro-Ngariam road in Katakwi. The road was washed away, cutting off 32,000 people in the two sub-counties. UNDP undertook to repair the road, with the immediate goal of facilitating the delivery of humanitarian assistance to the detached population, and the medium term goal of supporting the implementation of early recovery and recovery interventions during and in the post floods period. The project was labour-based, employing the local population as much as possible to do the road clearance, levelling, excavation, compacting and installation of culverts. Approximately 70-75% of the construction costs of the 15km stretch went to local communities as payment for their labour.

“The labour-based approach is one way of enabling members of the community to earn from programmes meant for them, while at the same time building ownership by empowering them to participate in the planning, implementation and monitoring such projects,” the UNDP Resident Representative, Mr. Theophane Nikyema, said at the hand-over ceremony in Katakwi.

He hailed the French Government, which availed the funds for the project, as a true partner to the people of Teso – and Uganda – in their hour of need.

The French Ambassador to Uganda, Mr. Rene Forceville, said the people of Teso and Lango sub-regions face several challenges that have deterred development of the regions, and should work together in the reconstruction of these regions.

Flooding in several districts in eastern and northern Uganda affected more than 50,000 households. Most of these districts have also severely suffered from years of conflict between the Government and the rebel Lord’s Resistance Army.

UNDP has provided capacity support to the Department of Disaster Preparedness (DDP) under the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) and to the Local Council system to coordinate response to the floods disaster. The DDP office in eastern Uganda has been established and equipped. The early recovery cluster is working with this office to identify training needs of sub-county disaster management committees and for the formulation of the training programme. Furthermore, UNDP is supporting the Government and the leadership of the affected districts in undertaking assessments to establish the impact of the assistance to the flood-affected communities and to determine the gaps/needs of the communities, with regard to early recovery. Additionally, UNDP is supporting collection and management of information on the recovery process at district and national levels. The DDP is mapping coverage of early recovery interventions.

Contributed by Charlotte Kawesa Ntulume

Programme Analyst

UNDP Uganda - CPR Unit