Uganda - ACT: 30-Oct-03
Action by Churches Together (ACT)
Appeal - Uganda - Katakwi District
Emergency Assistance to IDPs in Katakwi District - AFUG-32
Appeal Target: US$ 322,260
30 October 2003
Katakwi district, in north eastern Uganda has suffered insecurity for over
two decades. Since 1979/80 heavily armed Karamojong warriors have carried
out intermittent raids to steal livestock, property and food from
agricultural fields across the whole of Teso region of which Katakwi is a
part. The raids are vicious in nature with many cases of rape, sexual
abuse and murder / maiming of those who resist them.
Exacerbating the situation further, the Lords Resistance Army (LRA) has
carried out merciless attacks across Northern Uganda since 1986. During
this time the LRA has killed or mutilated thousands of innocent civilians,
abducted tens of thousands of children forcing them into combat, and
subjecting them to torture and sexual violence. In June 2003 the rebels
of the Lords Resistance Army (LRA) started to mount attacks in Katakwi and
the neighbouring district of Soroti. The UN estimates that since the LRA
made its incursion into eastern Uganda around June of 2003, an additional
240,000 people have been displaced in the Teso region, including 150,000
in the Katakwi district.
When ACT appeal AFUG-12 for emergency Assistance for the IDPs in Katakwi
District was launched in October 2001 it was estimated that more than
88,000 people (about 30% of the population of the district) were living in
dreadful conditions in more than 52 IDP camps across Katakwi. This number
has now drastically increased to over 150,000 making conditions in the
camps and host communities unbearable. The camps have little or no formal
infrastructure – they are simply the result of terrified people running
for their lives to where they think they might be safe. Camp leaders have
assumed a lot of powers and are responsible for registering their fellow
IDPs, and representing them in liasing with the district’s Population
Officer for official recognition to be residents of the camps. It is
presumed by the IDPs that official recognition might allow allocation of
precious resources – if the district had any. But Katakwi district has
always been a poor district and the constantly changing situation
stretches the resources of the local authorities and the host populations
to breaking point.
So far there has been only minimal intervention from the international
community and its NGO representatives in Uganda. The WFP has been
exploring possibilities of distributing food aid through NGOs present in
the region as it found itself unable to distribute food due to the
continuous displacement of the IDPs in the area due to insecurity.
ACT member the Lutheran World Federation, Department of World Service
(LWF/DWS) Uganda Programme would like to continue assisting the displaced
people of Katakwi district as was the case in AFUG12 and is proposing
assistance comprising:- provision of water and sanitation through drilling
and rehabilitation of bore-holes; training of community members on
sanitation and hygiene practices; provision of health care including
mosquito nets to over 4,000 families. Other programs of assistance will
include educational items, non-food items and disaster preparedness for
the communities.
LWF will work with the local government authorities and will fully involve
them in the capacity building programs. One of the contributions that LWF
proposes to provide to the local authorities is the assistance in
construction of the airstrip to facilitate the landing of the WFP planes
and other cargo planes delivering goods to the district.
The implementation is planned to start in November, 2003 and be completed
by the end of October 2004 giving it an implementation period of 12
months.
Project Completion Date: 31 October 2004
Summary of Appeal Targets, Pledges/Contributions Received and Balance
Requested
US$
Total Appeal Target(s) 322,260
Less: Pledges/Contr. Recd. 0
Balance Requested from ACT Network 322,260
Thor-Arne Prois
Director, ACT Co-ordinating Office
REQUESTING ACT MEMBER
Lutheran World Federation / Department for World Service
(LWF/DWS) - Uganda Programme.
IMPLEMENTING ACT MEMBER INFORMATION
LWF Uganda, a programme of LWF/DWS Geneva, has been carrying out relief,
rehabilitation and development projects in Uganda since 1979. Emergency
relief programmes undertaken include famine relief in Karamoja, returnee
settlement of about 350,000 people in West Nile, assistance to Internally
Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the Luwero triangle and latterly in Katakwi,
assistance to Congolese refugees in South Western Uganda, Cross boarder
assistance into Rwanda, DRC and Sudan, and peace and reconciliation
activities aimed at reducing the inter and intra ethnic conflicts in the
Karamoja region. LWF is currently implementing an emergency water and
sanitation project in Katakwi. This project started life as ACT appeal
AFUG-12 is funded largely by ECHO and is expected to close at the end of
October 2003. Reflecting the priority of existing ECHO programmes the work
is primarily aimed at increasing safe water coverage and improving the
hygiene conditions of the IDPs living in camps as a result of Karamojong
raids. The project has improved access to water in 19 camps in the worst
affected parts of Katakwi, while a concurrent programme of training water
user committees has improved the knowledge and understanding of water and
sanitation issues and practices amongst the IDP population in a total of
30 camps.
III. DESCRIPTION of the EMERGENCY SITUATION
Background
Katakwi district, in Northeastern Uganda has suffered from
insecurity for over two decades. Since 1979/80 heavily armed
Karamojong warriors have carried out intermittent raids across
the whole of Teso region of which Katakwi is a part. The
warriors typically come in small numbers to steal livestock,
property and food from agricultural fields. The raids are vicious
in nature with many cases of rape, sexual abuse and murder /
maiming of those who resist them. Moreover due to an ongoing
4-year drought in the Karamojong region there has been a marked
increase in the intensity of the raids since 2000.
When AFUG-12 Emergency Assistance for the IDPs in Katakwi
District was launched in October 2001 it was estimated that more
than 88,000 people (about 30% of the population of the district)
were living in dreadful conditions in more than 52 IDP camps
across Katakwi. The worst-affected areas being the 8 sub-counties
bordering Karamoja (Karamoja borders Teso to the East).
The camps are relatively informal with most receiving little or
no assistance from aid agencies. Initially the displaced would
move to the camps for security at night and access their fields
and crops by day. But over time the ever-present threat of
attacks by the Karamojong has led to reduced access to the
fields. The IDPs have thus lost their source of food and income
and become progressively destitute / impoverished.
To add to this already appalling humanitarian crisis, in June
2003 the rebels of the Lords Resistance Army (LRA) started to
mount attacks in Katakwi and the neighbouring district of Soroti.
The LRA, led by Joseph Kony, has carried out merciless attacks
across Northern Uganda since 1986. It states its aims as the
overthrow of the government of President Yoweri Museveni in order
to rule Uganda in accordance with the Ten Commandments. The
Ugandan Government has long labelled it a terrorist group and the
growing international acceptance of this interpretation led to
its inclusion on the US State Department's 'Terrorist Exclusion
List' in December 2001.
What is clear is that throughout the last 17 years the LRA has
killed or mutilated thousands of innocent civilians, abducted
tens of thousands of children forcing them into combat, and
subjecting them to torture and sexual violence. According to the
UN, the total number of registered child abductions since 1990 is
over 20,000.
Previously the LRA attacks were almost exclusively centred on
the Acholi region that borders Teso to the North West. This
changed in 2002 when the Uganda People's Defense Force (UPDF)
launched 'Operation Iron Fist'. This was successful in destroying
several LRA bases in southern Sudan. However rather than ending
the war, this led to LRA fighters moving deeper into northern
Uganda including for the first time the Teso region.
The UN estimates that since the LRA made its unprecedented
incursion into eastern Uganda an additional 240,000 people have
been displaced in the Teso region, including 150,000 in the
Katakwi district.
Current situation - crisis
The population of the IDP camps having expanded gradually over
the years in response to Karamojong raids from the East has now
exploded as a result of the LRA incursion from the North West.
The people of Katakwi are literally caught between a rock and a
hard place.
The camps have little or no formal infrastructure - they are
simply the result of terrified people literally running for their
lives to where they think they might be safe. Typically the IDPs
will congregate in towns or trading centres where there is some
form of military presence to provide security. Camp leaders are
responsible for registering their fellow IDPs, and representing
them for example in liasing with the district’s Population
Officer seeking official recognition of a camp. Official
recognition might allow allocation of precious resources - if
the district had any. But Katakwi is a poor district and the
constantly changing situation is stretching the resources of the
local government and the host populations to breaking point. So
far there has been only minimal intervention from the
international community and its NGO representatives in Uganda.
The WFP is exploring possibilities of distributing food aid
through NGOs present in the region. It has been hindered by the
difficulty of tracking IDP movements, and by LRA attacks on its
own trucks.
Current security situation
A local militia group, the Arrow group, is fighting against the
LRA alongside the UPDF and there is even talk of the UPDF
enlisting the Karamojong warriors to help them fight the LRA.
Needless to say given the history of Karamojong raids this is not
a popular option in Katakwi.
Indeed there is evidence that groups of Karamojong warriors are
already using the diversion caused by the LRA incursion to step
up their own raiding of IDP camps in Katakwi. In a single raid on
Opeuro Aodot IDP camp on 20 September 2003, 31 people (including
women and children) are reported to have been murdered by the
warriors.
Moreover despite the use of militia and a beefed-up UPDF
presence in the Teso region there is no sign of success in
stopping or even reducing the LRA attacks and it is envisaged
that the number of IDPs is likely to grow before it reduces.
Impact on human lives
Over 200,000 people are currently living as IDPs in Katakwi.
They have lost property, including livestock and crops. Economic
life for most has ground to a halt and scores of schools in the
district have closed down.
As a response to the crisis, the District Disaster Management
Committee (DDMC) of Katakwi in collaboration with civil society
organisations (CSOs) organized an assessment to establish the
humanitarian situation in the district 25 -26 July 2003. The
assessment identified the following
The IDPs camps are overcrowded with poor sanitation
Access to water is especially limited in camps near schools
where one bore hole often serves over 1,000 people. Often the
yield is so low and the local people resort to unsafe water from
nearby swamps.
Some education infrastructures have been damaged. Those that
are available cannot be accessed for use by the school children.
Primary seven children are not able to sit for their final
examinations since they do not have access to their classes.
Common preventable diseases such as measles, malaria, diarrhoea
and pneumonia are spreading and there is an increasing level of
morbidity from these diseases.
Access to health services is reducing, and their cost is rising
due to the inability to get supplies in. In Kapelebyong the cost
of some basic medicines is reported to have gone up 2000% in just
3 months. The total cost of malaria treatment is about $10 -
beyond the reach of the IDPs.
Due to the poor conditions there is a risk of increased levels
of transmission of STDs including HIV/ AIDS
Lack of basic domestic utensils is a major problem.
Many IDPs sleep on polythene sacks on the floor. Some have no
bed sheets or blankets; many more have only the one set of torn
clothes they escaped with.
In areas that are hosts to the IDPs the education infrastructure
is inadequate: the classrooms are congested by day and by night
are used as bedrooms.
The presence of the IDPs has put a lot of pressure on existing
food stocks of the host communities. This has led to premature
harvesting of crops and malnutrition
The lack of international intervention and the above mentioned
resource constraints inevitably means that the DDMC has not been
able to mount an effective response to the humanitarian needs of
the IDPs. This appeal aims to address some of the priorities
listed above, and hopefully if successful help to prevent the
crisis turning into a disaster.
Description of the damage
Trading centres have been either vandalised or burnt down.
Health centres have been either looted or rendered
non-operational.
Over three hundred schools are reported to have closed in the
entire Teso region according to local religious leaders.
At least six registered camps have been burnt down. The rebels
are thought to be targeting camps to force IDPs back to their
villages where they are more vulnerable to attack.
There has been a failure to harvest crops because the
agricultural fields are inaccessible.
Over 150,000 people have been displaced swelling the IDP
population in the district to over 200,000
Many have died - it is certainly in the hundreds but the fast
changing situation makes it impossible to put an accurate figure
on it.
Children have been orphaned and women widowed.
The major road between Katakwi and Soroti is impassable because
of the presence of the rebels in the villages through which the
road passes. Vehicles have been ambushed or blown up, and
passengers killed. This includes the ambush of a WFP convoy on 15
August resulting in the deaths of 2 drivers and loss of 3 trucks.
To avoid the unsafe road many people prefer to access Katakwi
through the nearby lake using small motorboats. These boats are
overloaded all the time and are a risk to the lives of the
travellers. Others pass through Karamoja and join the roads to
Soroti and Kampala in Mbale town. This is a very expensive way
of travelling as going from Katakwi to Soroti via Mbale is 4
times further than travelling directly. It is also a very risky
route because of the history of Karamojong warriors ambushing
road users.
Location of the proposed response to the emergency
Katakwi district is located in north eastern Uganda, 520 km from
Kampala. It borders the Moroto district in the East and North
(which is part of Karamoja), Lira district in the Northwest, and
Soroti district in the South West. The district (along with
Soroti) is one of the 4 districts that form "mother" Teso.
Katakwi is made up of 3 counties, and 18 sub-counties. LWF is
currently active in 6 sub-counties and, subject to the
availability of funds, will move into at least 2 other
sub-counties (Toroma and Kapujan) that are currently hosting the
largest numbers of IDPs from the rebel-affected areas.
Disaster and emergency statistics
As mentioned above the number of IDPs has been varying since the
start of attacks and the authorities are finding it very
difficult to provide up to date information. Table 1 includes the
most recent figures produced by the District Population Officer,
using information supplied by district and NGO staff. It should
be noted that this represents the number of IDPs living in
registered camps. It does not include those assimilated into the
host communities nor does it include those in unregistered
groupings.
Table 1: Number of IDPs at various locations in Katakwi district
Center no.
Name of center
IDP population
1
Obalanga
29,700
2
Kapelebyong
7,963
3
Oditel
2,756
4
Amuria
11,432
5
Asamuk
2,259
6
Acowa
6,000
7
Wera
1,368
8
Katakwi town council
1,302
9
Toroma
1,560
10
Kapujan
1,500
11
Morungatuny
2,500
12
Orungo
2,000
13
Abarilela - Old center
1,687
14
Abarilela - Okoona
1,072
15
Abarilela - Arute
1,814
Total in new camps
74,913
1
Magoro
5,249
2
Omasia
3,099
3
Adacar
2,220
4
Orungo corner
3,167
5
Aketa
3,106
6
Ongongoja
477
7
Milmil
1,440
8
Obulengorok
1,691
9
Okuda
850
10
Okocho
1,512
11
Ngariam sub-county headquarters
6,530
Total IDPs found in old camps (new IDPs)
29,341
Grand total
104,254
GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Goals
To continue to support the most vulnerable IDP populations
affected by the Karamojong raids in the provision of emergency
rehabilitation needs.
To provide emergency humanitarian assistance to new IDP
populations fleeing the LRA incursion and host families in
Katakwi and surrounding areas.
Objectives
To increase access to safe water in the worst effected areas
To increase access to sanitation and education in the worst
affected areas
To provide basic sets of Non Food Items (NFIs) to the most
vulnerable IDPs
To provide basic preventative healthcare materials to IDPs and
their host families in Katakwi
To provide basic educational materials to the most needy
children
To work with the local authorities and CSOs to identify gaps in
the response to the crisis and devise strategies to address these
gaps. Under this objective the project will identify
psychosocial needs and link the affected to relevant
organisations.
TARGETED BENEFICIARIES
The main beneficiary population will be the IDPs living in
registered camps. The total number is currently estimated by the
District to be 104,254 people in 17,376 households (see Table 1
above). In addition to this LWF will seek to identify vulnerable
groups within the other 2 main IDP populations and distribute
non-food items to them - those that are living with friends or
family in the host community and those that are living rough in
unregistered groups. Whenever possible a balance will be struck
to ensure the poor host communities benefit as well as the IDPs.
Criteria used for beneficiary selection
Beneficiaries for shelter and the distribution of NFIs will be
the most vulnerable of families who will be selected for
assistance by LWF project staff working hand in hand with the
network of IDP camp leaders.
Special efforts will be made to provide assistance to children,
the elderly, lactating mothers and female-headed households
Beneficiaries of the bore hole drilling and rehabilitation will
be the IDP camps/ host communities who are judged by the project
staff in consultation with the sub-county chiefs and Local
councils to be most in need of improved access to water and
sanitation
Beneficiaries of the training programmes (for Water User
Committees and pump mechanics) will be members of the IDP and
host communities selected by the project staff in consultation
with the camp leaders.
PROPOSED EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE & IMPLEMENTATION
Non-Food Items (NFIs)
Provide 5,000 sets of domestic utensils to the most vulnerable IDPs
Provide 10,000 blankets to IDPs and their host families in Katakwi.
Provide 5,000 sets of second hand clothing to the most vulnerable IDPs
Provide exercise books, pens, pencils, and mathematical sets to
5,000 pupils
Provide treated mosquito nets to 4,000 IDPS and their host families in
Katakwi
Provide sanitary wear to 2,000 schoolgirls above 11 years of age.
Water & Sanitation
Drill 10 boreholes
Rehabilitate 12 bore holes
Train or retrain 22 water User committees
Train or retrain 44 pumps mechanics
Community awareness on sanitation and hygiene practices.
Disaster Preparedness
Produce an assessment of the response by all parties to the
crisis highlighting areas where increased capacity is required
and who is best placed to provide it
Assist the local authorities in the provision of an air strip to
improve access to Katakwi town for easy delivery of humanitarian
inputs and evacuation
Implementation description
All the bore hole drilling and rehabilitation activities will be
contracted out following the established government tendering
system. The successful bidders will sign contracts with LWF
Kampala before they start any work. Project staff in Katakwi will
supervise implementation in the field.
Supplies of NFIs will be contracted to competent firms/
organisations selected by LWF Uganda Logistics Department in
Kampala. The LWF Katakwi project staff will distribute and
monitor the use of the items.
The project staff in Katakwi will carry out training of water
user committees and pump mechanics, building on their experience
of implementing this activity under AFUG-12. The staff will also
create awareness about sanitation and hygiene practices.
ADMINISTRATION, FINANCE, MONITORING & REPORTING
Administration
In the field all the activities will be under the responsibility
of the Katakwi-based Project Co-ordinator. The project
Co-ordinator will in turn be responsible at national level to the
LWF Uganda Country Representative.
Finance
Financial reporting will be co-ordinated at the field level by
the Administrator / Accountant of LWF Katakwi. He will maintain
full accounting records for the project and send a monthly report
to the LWF Kampala Program Accountant who will be imported to our
ACCPAC accounting system. The LWF Kampala Finance Manager,
directly from ACCPAC, will produce financial reports to donors.
Monitoring
Participatory monitoring and evaluation of the project will
involve
Project field staff
Camp leaders to represent the beneficiaries
Local authority staff (e.g. the district line department
officials for education, water and health when the activities
being under review are in their areas of charge) and
Other NGOs working in Katakwi.
Monthly review meetings will feed directly into both the
planning/ implementation of future activities and the monthly
progress report to LWF-Uganda head office in Kampala.
LWF Kampala staff will be responsible for donor reporting and
will also undertake periodic monitoring visits to the field.
Reporting
Quarterly and interim reports complete with financial updates
will be produced by the Project Co-ordinator and submitted to the
Representative for onward transmission to ACT co-ordinating
office.
Reporting Schedule
First interim report - 31 January 2004
Second interim report - 30 April 2004
Third interim report - 31 July 2004
Final report within three months of closing date of 31 October 2004.
IMPLEMENTATION TIME TABLE
The project will start in November 2003. The exact timing of the
implementation of each component will depend upon the timing of
the receipt of funding. In total project implementation
including the training programmes and production of a disaster
preparedness strategy paper is expected to take 1 year, with a
target completion date of 31 October 2004.
Transition from emergency
The transition from the emergency is dependent upon the success
of the UPDF in repelling the LRA attacks and providing sufficient
security to protect the people of Katakwi from Karamojong raids.
When this peace is achieved the IDPs will voluntarily return to
their original homes. At that stage having built a much-needed
presence in a part of Uganda that has generally been neglected by
the INGO community, LWF hopes to assist the transition by
providing rehabilitation inputs and mounting a long-term
sustainable development programme.
To assist in the peace building process the LWF is currently
seeking funds from other sources for a peace and reconciliation
programme involving cross border dialogue between Karamoja and
Katakwi.
CO-ORDINATION
Katakwi district has a district association networks (KADDAN),
made up of the various development and humanitarian NGOs working
in the district. KADDAN calls periodic meetings to review
progress of activities and to promote a co-ordinated approach by
civil society organisations, religious leaders and the district
authorities.
The District Disaster Management Committee (DDMC) of Katakwi is
the local government body responsible for co-ordinating the
district’s own response. It is also represented at the KADDAN
meetings.
During the course of the implementation of this appeal, regular
meetings of the Uganda ACT alliance will be conducted to share
experiences/ lessons learnt and to map out away forward. This
will help to ensure a co-ordinated response to this and other
emergency situations in Uganda by the ACT network.
Given the limited resources available and the scale of the
problem these three bodies are vital for co-ordinating
humanitarian assistance in the district.
BUDGET
ESTIMATED EXPENDITURE
Description Type of No of Unit Cost Budget
Unit Units US$ US$
CRISIS PHASE
DIRECT ASSISTANCE
Non Food Items
Domestic utensils Set 5000 5.00 25,000
Blankets Piece 10000 1.50 15,000
Clothing kits Set 5000 4.00 20,000
Educational materials Set 5000 2.00 10,000
Mosquito nets Piece 4000 2.50 10,000
Sanitary wear Piece 2,000 1.25 2,500
Sub total 82,500
Water & Sanitation
Drilling of 10
boreholes Borehole 10 8,000.00 80,000
Rehabilitation of 12
boreholes Borehole 12 2,000.00 24,000
Train 22 water-user committees Person 220 25.00 5,500
Train 44 pump mechanics Person 44 25.00 1,100
Sanitation & hygiene education Days 10 100.00 1,000
Sub total 111,600
POST CRISIS PHASE
Assistance in building an
airstrip Lumpsum 10,000
TOTAL DIRECT ASSISTANCE 204,100
MATERIAL TRANSPORT, STORAGE, WAREHOUSING &
HANDLING
Transport & Handling
Truck Hire Month 12 750.00 9,000
Truck running costs Month 12 500.00 6,000
Warehousing costs Kampala Month 12 50.00 600
Sub total 15,600
Salaries & Benefits
Katakwi Project
Co-ordinator Month 12 1,500.00 18,000
Commity Development Assistant
(4) Month 12 1,400.00 16,800
Administrator/Accountant Month 12 650.00 7,800
Driver Month 12 350.00 4,200
Secretary Month 12 350.00 4,200
Guards Month 12 200.00 2,400
Office Messenger Month 12 200.00 2,400
Sub total 55,800
Travel Expenses
4WD vehicle hire Month 12 500.00 6,000
4WD running costs Month 12 500.00 6,000
Motorcycle running costs Month 12 400.00 4,800
Per diem to/from Kampala 4
pers Day 112 10.00 1,120
Sub total 17,920
Description Type of No of Unit Cost Budget
Unit Units US$ US$
Communications & Project Office
Stationery Month 12 100.00 1,200
Office rent & utilities Month 12 400.00 4,800
Tel, fax,e-mail Month 12 250.00 3,000
Sub total 9,000
PERSONNEL, AMIN, OPS & SUPPORT
Representative (5%) Month 12 500.00 6,000
Programme Co-ordinator (10%) Month 12 400.00 4,800
Finance Manager (10%) Month 12 200.00 2,400
Programme Accountant Month 12 100.00 1,200
Procurement Officer (10%) Month 12 120.00 1,440
Sub total 15,840
CAPITAL EQUIPMENT (over US$ 500)
Computers &
accessories Computer 1 2,000.00 2,000
Sub total 2,000
Other Expenses
Audit Fees Lump sum 2000
TOTAL ESTIMATED EXPENDITURE 322,260
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Action by Churches Together (ACT) is a worldwide alliance of churches and
their related agencies, meeting human need through co-ordinated emergency
response. The ACT Coordinating Office is based with the World Council of
Churches (WCC) and the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) in Switzerland.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Ecumenical Centre Phone: ++41-22-791.60.33
150, route de Ferney Fax: ++41-22-791.65.06
P.O. Box 2100 E-Mail: act@wcc-coe.org
1211 Geneva 2 Telex: 415 730 OIK CH
Switzerland http://www.act-intl.org
distributed by
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Center for International web: www.cidi.org
Disaster Information listserv: www.cidi.org/listsub.htm
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
comments/suggestions/requests to incident@cidi.org