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Farming Land Access Made Easy

Community-led initiative to improve food security through access to adequate farmland for increased food production among refugee farmers.

Municipality

UG
Terego, Terego,

Category / Sub-Category / Topic

Healthcare, Feeding

Type of investment needed

Grant

Associated SDGs

The challenge

The majority of refugee households affected by the protracted crisis in Rhino camp are food insecure, with half being severely food insecure. The settlements, including Rhino Camp, reported food as their leading unmet need, which could be attributed to food ration cuts by 30% in 2020 (Food Security Assessment report 2020). Key factors influencing food availability include land access for agricultural production, crop production, and livestock ownership.

Among the refugees, about 51 per cent were applying emergency coping strategies, especially in Rhino Camp (90%). As a coping strategy, the following was done: eat less preferred food, reduce the number of meals in a day, and limit portion size at mealtimes (World Food Program).

The project

Community-managed initiative promoting increased crop production as a coping mechanism to address food consumption gaps for refugees in Rhino Camp settlement. Beyond the mere distribution of farm inputs, skills training, and related interventions, this initiative will deliberately establish a mediation system addressing land access for enhanced agricultural production and productivity. It responds to the feeding needs of both the refugee and host community grappling with food insecurity due to reduced food rations and the limited size of farmland available for sufficient family and market-oriented food production.

The refugee community in Rhino Camp is taking the lead in tackling food insecurity through negotiated access to larger farmland for sustainable food production. Negotiations will involve landlords, refugee farmers, the OPM, and the Local Government of the Terego district, conducted through meetings with all stakeholders. Within the communities, there are landlords willing to lease their land for agricultural use for a specified period, typically ranging from 2 to 5 years. Government presence ensures security and an eligibility forum for the process, thereby benefiting both parties.

The project aims to facilitate a process enabling refugee farmers to collectively engage in dialogue with host community landlords for additional land dedicated to food production for both family and market purposes. The strategy comprises:

  • Stakeholder meetings to foster collective understanding of the issue at the community level;
  • Conducting mapping exercises to identify host community landlords, determining their numbers, and assessing available land size for refugee farmers;
  • Securing farmland right-of-use agreements with the land for at least 50 refugee farmers; and
  • Conducting follow-up visits to monitor the utilization of the acquired farmlands.

Know more...

Terego is an administrative unit in Uganda, operating at the District level, with a town council situated in the Northern subregion of West Nile, approximately 360 kilometers northwest of the capital, Kampala. Covering an area of 1,102 square kilometers, Terego District is home to 199,303 Ugandan nationals (according to the 2014 census) and 168,000 refugees, primarily from South Sudan, residing in the Imvepi refugee settlement and Rhino Camp refugee settlement. Agriculture serves as the backbone of the economy in Terego District, with 98.8% of households engaged in agriculture, focusing on major crops such as beans and sweet potatoes, as per the 2014 Uganda census.

Across 13 refugee settlements in Uganda, more than 91,000 refugees are grappling with extreme hunger, while 400,000 are classified as experiencing crisis hunger levels, and 135,130 children are acutely malnourished, urgently requiring treatment, according to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC).

The 123,243 refugees in the Rhino Camp settlement receive monthly food rations from the World Food Program, with the allocated amount depending on family size. Since 2015, food supplies have been reduced by 30%, and subsequent years have seen continued substantial cuts, reaching 40% as of 2022. Households relying on food production as an alternative to rations face challenges due to limited access to farmland for cultivation.

Some refugee farmers have voluntarily initiated dialogues to gain access to farmland, but this approach has been minimally effective. It has been observed that certain landlords exploit refugee farmers by not honoring individual agreements. Under the voluntary initiative, a refugee farmer and a host community landlord enter an agreement allowing the farmer to access and clear a piece of land for four years of food production. However, after one year of investing in clearing the land, the landlord may change their mind, claiming ownership without allowing the refugee farmer to fulfill the agreed-upon years. This unjust arrangement forces the refugee farmer to incur labor costs each year to clear new land. To address this issue, a collective approach involving other stakeholders such as the government, the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM), and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) would be considered under the initiative to ensure that land agreements are honored by all parties.

Strategy 1: Mapping of Landlords
  • Activity 1.1: Mapping landlords from the host community who have land for rent. A village-to-village mapping of all landlords will be conducted, obtaining written consent from individuals interested in participating as landlords.
Strategy 2: Community Meetings
  • Activity 2.1: Invitations for a community meeting to unite refugees, host communities, local leaders, and OPM to present the initiative.
  • Activity 2.2: Determine the size of land available for refugee farmers. Joint visits to identified landlords and their land sites will be conducted, including measurements of the available land.
  • Activity 2.3: Selection of willing landlords. Compile a concrete list of project participants by documenting all willing landlords with necessary details.
  • Activity 2.4: Discuss terms and sign land agreements with at least 10 landlords. The local government will develop terms of reference, presenting them to all parties to understand and commit to respecting the terms of engagement.

Strategy 3: Follow-up Visits

  • Activity 3.1: Conduct visits to farmers to assess land usage, ensuring well-coordinated and smooth implementation of the initiative.
  • Activity 3.2: Data collection to inform the next action. Develop data collection tools, gathering both qualitative and quantitative data on a quarterly basis. Record action points.

Direct Results

  • Compilation of a list of potential landlords around the Rhino Camp settlement, including location details.
  • Successful conduct of one stakeholder meeting to launch the initiative.
  • Allocation of 50 acres of farmland for refugee farmers to engage in food production.
  • Identification and contracting of 10 landlords committed to offering farmland for refugee farmers.
  • Signing of land agreements by 50 refugee farmers with host community landlords.
  • Implementation of at least 3 visits per farmer per quarter.
  • Generation of one comprehensive data collection package, consisting of 100 action photos, 2 videos, 2 reports, and 2 fact sheets.
  • Documentation of 25 success stories.

Expected Impact

  • A targeted increase of 30% in food production and productivity within the refugee settlement within one year.
  • An anticipated 60% enhancement in access to farmland for refugee farmers over the course of two years.
  • A projected reduction of conflict cases stemming from the struggle for natural resources by refugee and host communities by 20% within two years.

  • The Government of Uganda through the office of the Prime Minister.
  • United Nations High Commission for Refugees.
  • ZOA, an international not-for-profit organization.
  • The World Food Program
  • Peter Mali Adroma, Sub-county Chief in Uriama Sub-county (malipeteroadroma@gmail.com)
  • Magdalene Amujal, Executive Director at Kulika (magdalene@kulika.org)
  • Okello Bosco, Kulika; Project Officer (bosco@kulika.org)
  • Ajoku Benard Jotham, Kulika; Finance and Administration Officer (jotham@kulika.org)
  • Avako Gillian, Kulika; M&E Officer (gillian@kulika.org)
  • Amen Emanuel; Project Manager (amen@kulika.org)

Investment

(*): In kind/pro bonus

(**): Financing

Goods and inputs
Funds
Needed
Covered
Solicited

2 Laptops (*) (**)

u$s 2104.00

u$s 0.00

u$s 2104.00

Office supplies (notebooks, pens, paper) (*) (**)

u$s 900.00

u$s 900.00

u$s 0.00

Beverages (soda, water) (**)

u$s 3000.00

u$s 0.00

u$s 3000.00

Information material (tear drop, banner, t-shirts) (**)

u$s 2747.25

u$s 0.00

u$s 2747.25

Services
Funds
Needed
Covered
Solicited

Transportation (**)

u$s 22564.82

u$s 0.00

u$s 22564.82

Project Inception (Hall hire, transport refund, meals for 50 participants) (**)

u$s 2500.00

u$s 0.00

u$s 2500.00

Transport refund for 120 community stakeholders during meetings (**)

u$s 6000.00

u$s 0.00

u$s 6000.00

Bi weekly monitoring field visits and 1 Evaluation assessments requiring external data collectors (**)

u$s 7140.00

u$s 0.00

u$s 7140.00

Human resources
Funds
Needed
Covered
Solicited

1 Project field officer (**)

u$s 10615.38

u$s 0.00

u$s 10615.38

1 M&E Officer (**)

u$s 10615.38

u$s 0.00

u$s 10615.38

1 Finance & Admin Officer (**)

u$s 10615.38

u$s 0.00

u$s 10615.38

1 1 Project Manager (**)

u$s 13615.38

u$s 0.00

u$s 13615.38

Others
Funds
Needed
Covered
Solicited

Compensation for 10 Landlords (**)

u$s 2747.25

u$s 0.00

u$s 2747.25

Airtime and data bundles (**)

u$s 500.00

u$s 0.00

u$s 500.00

Head office administrative overheads (**)

u$s 1270.28

u$s 0.00

u$s 1270.28

TOTAL AMOUNTS:

u$s 96935.12

u$s 900.00

u$s 96035.12

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