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Bududa's Relocation Programme Is Judged on Whether Families Stay

Households moved off the unstable slopes keep returning. Land, water and schools at the destination explain most of it.

By Herbert WanyamaBududa and Bulambuli Districts6 min read
Relief distribution to families displaced by landslides on the slopes of Mount Elgon in eastern Uganda
Bududa and Bulambuli Districts. 22 June 2026.
AccountabilityLand & Resettlement

The slopes above Bududa are fertile and unstable in equal measure, which is why relocation has been policy for over a decade and why it keeps partially failing.

What draws families back

Plot sizes at resettlement sites are smaller than the gardens left behind, water points are shared with existing residents, and school places are not always reserved. Families split: one adult stays at the new house, the rest farm the old land.

We were given a house. We were not given a garden that feeds the house.
Relocated household head, Bulambuli

Disaster officials accept the criticism and argue the alternative is worse, pointing to the fatality record on the slopes during heavy rains.

Sources & further reading
  1. Office of the Prime Minister, Uganda - Government of Uganda
  2. Uganda Red Cross Society - URCS
  3. Daily Monitor - Nation Media Group
Herbert Wanyama
Eastern Uganda Correspondent, Mbale

Herbert Wanyama covers water infrastructure, flood recovery and resettlement around Mount Elgon and the eastern districts.

  • Water infrastructure
  • Disaster recovery
  • Resettlement
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