In a bid to address escalating land encroachment and food insecurity, officials from Uganda’s Ministry of Lands, Housing, and Urban Development have cautioned farmers against keeping their land idle, warning that unused land is more vulnerable to encroachment.
The remarks were made on Thursday during the national launch of the “Keep Your Land, Keep Your Seed” campaign in Dokolo district, aimed at raising awareness about land retention, productivity, and the preservation of indigenous food varieties.
The campaign, led by the Land and Equity Movement in Uganda (LEMU) and other partners, seeks to advocate for the rights of rural farmers and pastoral communities to maintain control over their land and seed varieties.
The initiative also emphasizes the need to resist the pressures of land sales and commercialized land access, which often lead to land loss, reduced productivity, and the erosion of local food diversity.
Naome Kabanda, acting director of land management at the Ministry, highlighted the ministry’s efforts to protect land rights across Uganda. She stressed, however, that for land to be fully safeguarded, it should remain productive. “Land has to be in use to be safe,” she noted, adding that outdated land laws further complicate efforts to manage conflicts under the current land administration system.
Concerns about increasing land wrangles were echoed by several speakers, including Rt. Rev. Prof. Alfred Olwa, Bishop of Lango Diocese. Represented by Christopher Odongo, the Diocesan Secretary for Education, Bishop Olwa urged for stronger policies to curb land disputes, saying, “If we do not act now, we risk losing not only our land but our heritage.”
Jimmy Ochom, Land Rights Coordinator at Oxfam Uganda, linked the rise in food insecurity to the loss of land. Ochom expressed hope that the government will regulate land sales, ensuring that farmers retain ownership and productivity.
Dr. Theresa Auma, Executive Director of LEMU, emphasized that the campaign aims to illuminate the relationship between land ownership and food security. “For sustainable development, we need to support farming communities in keeping their land and managing their food systems,” she stated.
Patience Baganzi, Dokolo District Police Commander, advocated for women’s land rights, stressing that lack of access to land is a contributing factor to domestic violence and family instability.
The “Keep Your Land, Keep Your Seed” campaign calls on landowners to withstand the pressures of land sales, evictions, and exploitative rental agreements that threaten Uganda’s farming communities and overall land productivity.
ENDS
