From August 26th to 30th, ESAFF Uganda, in collaboration with the Ministry of Lands Housing and Urban Development (MoLHUD) and district local governments in the Busoga sub-region, organized the 8th National Land Awareness Week (LAW) 2024. Themed "Promoting Land Rights and Land Use for Inclusiveness and Sustainable Development," this significant event spotlighted land rights challenges affecting marginalized groups, especially women, people with disabilities (PWDs), and youth, who often face exclusion from critical agribusiness value chains, such as coffee and sugarcane.
With over 27,420 participants, the LAW 2024 provided a platform for empowering small-scale farmers to access essential land rights information and advocate for sustainable land use practices. As part of the Fair4All project consortium, ESAFF Uganda led discussions on increasing access to legal aid services and promoting responsible land governance and investment, particularly in sectors like coffee and horticulture. ESAFF Uganda conducted its main activities in the Mayuge and Iganga districts.
One of the key highlights of the week was the active engagement of vulnerable groups in shaping land governance policies. Legal clinics, open dialogues, and land title searches empowered participants with crucial knowledge about land ownership and gender-inclusive policies. A participant from Mayuge district, a small-scale female farmer, shared how the week had been eye-opening: "For years we were deprived of our land rights even after purchasing land, but now we know our rights and will fight to protect them."
The expansion of sugarcane plantations, which has exacerbated food insecurity and environmental degradation in Busoga, was a central issue of discussion. ESAFF Uganda emphasized the importance of policies that limit sugarcane expansion, particularly for small-scale farmers with less than two acres of land to preserve food sovereignty. Farmer Mutakubwa Tadeo from Mayuge expressed concerns about this, lamenting, "We have seen our land slowly taken over by sugarcane. If this continues, our children will have no land left to cultivate."
LAW 2024 also reinforced the principles of free, prior, and informed consent (FPIC) and responsible agriculture investment, guided by global frameworks like the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure (VGGT) from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). These frameworks aim to protect community land rights and promote environmental sustainability amidst large-scale agribusiness investments.
The event also raised awareness about several emerging issues, such as land grabbing, which primarily targets women and PWDs, multiple land registrations, and land disputes with corporate entities. The participants expressed concern about ongoing conflicts between communities and the Busoga Forest Company, as well as the National Forestry Authority (NFA). These issues underscore the necessity for more inclusive and equitable land governance policies, which guarantee the inclusion of vulnerable groups in land acquisition procedures.
Through the Land Awareness Week 2024, ESAFF Uganda and its partners renewed their commitment to bridging the gap between land policy and practice. The outcomes of the week, particularly the inclusion of marginalized voices in land governance and the push for sustainable agricultural value chains, underscored the transformative impact that LAW 2024 has had on local communities.
As young farmer Kyozira Yudaya from Iganga district aptly summarized: “This awareness week has given us the courage to stand up and demand our land rights. We will no longer be silent.” LAW 2024 has created momentum for ongoing advocacy and collaboration to safeguard land rights and promote sustainable development in Uganda.
ESAFF Uganda’s participation in the LAW 2024 was made possible because of the partnership with Oxfam under the FAIR for ALL programme whose objective is to strengthen civil society to creating space and mobilize people across the world to demand and contribute to more inclusive and sustainable trade and value-chains where actors respect human rights, protect the environment and promote women's economic empowerment.
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