Concerns are emerging regarding the transfer of over 45,000 hectares of Acholi Sub-region’s government-owned land into private hands.
The Lands Ministry’s report reveals that individuals have acquired more than 158,100 hectares through leasehold and freehold titles. Specifically, 213 titles have been issued for government land from 1968 to 2023, covering 158,175.98 hectares, with 113 titles (45,244.53 hectares) being freehold and 100 titles (112,913.45 hectares) leasehold.
Prof Jack Nyeko Penmogi, the acting chair of the Uganda Land Commission, asserts that freehold ownership on public land is prohibited by law. He states, “We will cancel any such titles once verified. Public land can only be leased, with renewals upon expiration.” It’s noted that Gulu District holds 106 of the 213 government land titles. Agago District has the fewest, with five titles (55.55 hectares). Amuru District has 16 freehold titles (191.4 hectares) and three leasehold titles (1,862.3 hectares), totaling 2,053.7 hectares.
Gulu has 39 freehold titles (2,122.52 hectares) and 67 leasehold titles (108,657.62 hectares), totaling 110,780.14 hectares. Kitgum has 17 freehold (206.8 hectares) and 13 leasehold (102.73 hectares) titles, totaling 309.53 hectares. Lamwo has 16 freehold titles (16,052.17 hectares) and one leasehold title (80.52 hectares), totaling 16,132.69 hectares. Nwoya, with a significant number of commercial farmers, has six freehold titles (1,054.32 hectares) and 16 leasehold titles (2,210.55 hectares), totaling 3,264.87 hectares. Omoro and Pader have no leasehold titles; Omoro has six freehold titles (22.66 hectares), and Pader has eight (25,539.12 hectares).
In the broader Acholi Sub-region, which spans 2.8 million hectares across eight districts, there are 5,494 land titles processed by the Lands Ministry. Of these, 2,075 are freehold (174,313 hectares), and 3,419 are leasehold (593,875.2 hectares), with leasehold titles comprising 62 percent.
Gulu has the highest number of titles at 3,998, with 1,555 freehold and 2,443 leasehold, covering 240,019.88 hectares (28,167.89 hectares freehold). Kitgum has 223 freehold (6,608.96 hectares) and 526 leasehold (11,705.98 hectares) titles; Nwoya has 55 freehold (44,286 hectares) and 274 leasehold (293,848.4 hectares) titles; Amuru has 145 freehold (23,067.74 hectares) and 82 leasehold (21,901.98 hectares) titles; Omoro has six freehold (22.66 hectares) and 80 leasehold (49,718.61 hectares) titles; Pader has 46 freehold (52,742.71 hectares) and eight leasehold (4,386.54 hectares) titles; Lamwo has 30 freehold and one leasehold title; and Agago has 15 freehold (356.87 hectares) and five leasehold (381.46 hectares) titles.
Mr. Otinga Otto Atuka, the deputy paramount chief of the Acholi chiefdom, mentioned ongoing complaints from residents about threats from the National Forestry Authority and the National Environment Management Authority. He highlighted the issue of settlers in Pabbo Sub-county’s forest reserve claiming full ownership and seeking land titles post-conflict.
