Arwai handing over the contract documents to the staff of Nexus Green at the project site in Namokora in Kitgum district. Photo by Denis Opoka
By Denis Opoka
Kitgum
Construction of Dog Dem B irrigation scheme worth over shs919m has started in Namokora Town Council, Kitgum district.
On Thursday, the Ministry of Water and Environment (MWE) and Kitgum District Local Government handed over the site to mark the commencement of the solar-powered water irrigation scheme.
The project work will be implemented by Nexus Green Limited with funding from UK Export Finance Limited. Its construction is expected to be completed within four months.
The irrigation scheme will sit on a 12-acre piece of land and is estimated to benefit about 500 farmers in Namokora Town Council and neighboring areas.
Leviticus Mulindwa, an engineer at MWE Regional Center, emphasized the importance of monitoring and supervision by the district leadership to ensure the successful execution of the project.
“I implore you to use the existing system of government like the Local Council One chairperson up-to-district chairperson to communicate to the Ministry of Water and Environment in case you might have spotted any anomaly,” Mulindwa said.
Own the project
Arwai Christopher Obol, the Kitgum District Chairperson urged the residents to embrace the project and extend their support to the contractor during construction.
Arwai condemned the habit of the community terming such developments as government projects, instead of owning them.
He explained that if well taken care of, these projects aim to improve the nutritional levels of communities throughout Uganda and economic status, income security,
“This is your project, not the government, and the government only brought it to you,” Arwai said.
Arwai appealed to the contractor to employ local individuals with the relevant skills and ensure value for money throughout the construction process.
Hajj Marijan Walire, the Kitgum Deputy Resident District Commissioner reiterated the government’s commitment to supporting farmers through irrigation projects and thanked the MWE for initiating the irrigation scheme.
Marijan is optimistic that the project will “significantly increase agricultural output and transform the local community from subsistence farming to money generating sector.”
Benson Okidi, a sociologist at the MWE Northern Regional Center, said the project launch is aimed at promoting agricultural productivity, mitigating the impact of climate change, and uplifting the livelihoods of the people in Northern and Eastern Uganda.
“The project scheme signifies a significant step towards sustainable agricultural development and economic growth in the region,” Okidi said.
Farmers neighboring the irrigation project hope will solve the shortage of vegetables in the district during drought.
Florence Pinyloya, a resident of Dog Dem ‘A’ Cell said the only dam which was constructed in the 1950s by the British was only meant for livestock and other domestic use.
“I do not doubt that the project, once completed, will impact us positively through growing vegetables for sale to other places like Kitgum Town or any other part of Uganda,” she said.
Pinyloya asked the Kitgum District Local Government to ensure the road linking Namokora to Kitgum via the Mucwini sub-county is worked on to ease transportation of their produce to the market.
Mitigation against floods
Richard Akena, the resident of Dog Dem B’ hopes that this project will also help prevent the over-flooding of the dam during the rainy season.
“Whenever it rains, the crops in the nearby gardens are always destroyed. I’m happy that this project will address such a challenge.”
Richard Dick Kilama, the councilor representing Namokora Town Council councilor at Kitgum District, asked the landlord to accommodate anyone who wants to benefit from the project.
“This project is for everyone, not only the landlords or people living around this dam. Whoever comes from any area should not be stopped,” he advised.
Policy undertaking
According to the United Nations projections, Uganda’s population in 2024 is 49.9 million, a 2.76% increase from 2023. This population increase puts pressure on the earth’s limited natural resources such as arable land.
This implies that irrigation is becoming more important because of the growing demand for food by a rapidly growing world population.
The National Irrigation policy: Agricultural Transformation through Irrigation Development of 2017 under the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industries and Fisheries shows that Uganda’s ratio of cultivated area under irrigation to the irrigation potential is only 0.5% which is almost the lowest in East Africa.
Yet the steady impacts of climate change and population pressure on land are adversely impacting large-scale agriculture, countrywide.
To mitigate the adverse effect of drought on large-scale agriculture, Uganda in 2018 adopted an irrigation policy that strives to establish irrigation schemes in each parish countrywide.
It is hoped that the implementation of the irrigation schemes will propel optimal use of available land and water resources for agricultural production and productivity to improve food security, create more jobs, and improve income.
