The legislatures representing the people of Acholi in the 11th Parliament have expressed their disappointment and frustration with the delay in rolling out the NUSAF 4 follow-up program.
The issue was first raised by the Bardege-Layibi division MP Ojara Martin Mapenduzi, and together they think this could deliberately frustrate government efforts to eradicate poverty in the region.
Mapenduzi says "There are deliberate attempts to make sure that if this successor program takes place it has to cover the entire country, and so they have sat on the document for several months there is no progress and that is what is called a deliberate attempt to continue to impoverish the people of Acholi and northern Uganda."
The issue has been brought to the limelight by the Bardege-Layibi division member of Parliament Ojara Martin Mapenduzi who also doubles as the Chairperson of the public service committee in the 11th Parliament.
The Northern Uganda Social Action Fund commonly known as NUSAF is a government intervention to eradicate poverty from the formerly LRA war-affected regions of Acholi, Lango, Teso, West Nile and Karamoja.
In a press conference held in Gulu city on Sunday the 1st of October 2023, the members of the Acholi Parliamentary Group again brought up the issue alleging that there is a deliberate move to impoverish the people of the Acholi sub-region by delaying the NUSAF 4 program, "the government does not have any proper program to lift up the Acholi from poverty, they just want us to be poor every day" claims the Aruu North MP, Santa Okot.
The NUSAF project is meant to provide improved inputs, investment capital, and value addition equipment.
But despite the various poverty eradication programs that have been initiated in the Acholi sub-region such as Peace, Recovery, and Development Plan, and the Development Initiative for Northern Uganda among others, the Acholi sub-region has continuously ranked as the poorest in Uganda at 68 per cent.
The Members of Parliament present at the presser are Okin PP Ojara of Cwa West, Amos John Okot of Agago North, Santa Okot of Aruu North, Ojara Martin Mapenduzi of Bardege-Layibi division, and Anthony Akol of Kilak North.
The Kilak North MP Anthony Akol is the current chairperson of the Acholi parliamentary group, "And this we are going to present on the floor of Parliament because if it is not implemented there is no way there is no way you are going to uplift people from poverty" he said.
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He also wants the government to revive the 2004 IDP policy which he believes would have eased the reintegration of the people who had lived in the internally displaced people's camps for long back into their communities.
Solomon Nokrach is a social worker, he has been involved in different government poverty eradication programs in the Acholi sub-region.
For two years he was hands-on involved in the implementation of NUSAF 3 in the districts of Lamwo, Omoro and Kitgum as an officer at the Kitgum NGO Forum.
However, Nokrach who is also the regional coordinator of the Forum for Women in Democracy believes that these programs are not enough to lift the people of Acholi out of poverty, as they are mismanaged by corrupt technocrats, "you find that there is a lot of corruption right from the group leaders themselves and also the technical staff in the NUSAF project" he points the problem to be deep-rooted on the technocrats including the Community Development Officers.
According to communications from the Parliament of Uganda, the NUSAF 4 program was set to be rolled out in July 2023 to the tune of 290 million USD.
The author of this article is the Next Media Group bureau chief for Northern Uganda, he can be contacted at jomago[email protected] or follow him on X (former Twitter) @OmagorJoseph
