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RR RUEHGI RUEHRN RUEHROV
DE RUEHKM #0463/01 1260512
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 060512Z MAY 09
FM AMEMBASSY KAMPALA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 1394
INFO RUEHKH/AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM 0803
RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE
RUEHXR/RWANDA COLLECTIVE
RUEHGI/AMEMBASSY BANGUI 0064
RUEHTO/AMEMBASSY MAPUTO 0542
RUEHSA/AMEMBASSY PRETORIA 3578
RHMFIUU/CJTF HOA

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 KAMPALA 000463 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT PASS TO USAID AND OFDA 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: PHUM PREF ASEC EAID UG SU CG
SUBJECT:  NORTHERN UGANDA NOTES (APRIL 1-30, 2009) 
 
KAMPALA 00000463  001.2 OF 003 
 
 
¶1.  Summary:  The following Northern Uganda Notes provide 
information on the situation on the ground and USG activities aimed 
at meeting Mission objectives in northern Uganda.  These objectives 
include promoting regional stability through peace and security, 
good governance, access to social services, economic growth, and 
humanitarian assistance.  Post appreciates feedback from consumers 
on the utility of this product and any gaps in information that need 
to be filled.  End Summary. 
 
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PEACE AND RECONCILIATION PROCESSES 
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¶2.  Gulu University held a conference entitled "Juba Peace Talks: 
Lessons Learnt Workshop" on April 23-24.  The objective was to 
identify lessons that could be applied in future engagement with 
stakeholders in the peace process between the Lord's Resistance Army 
(LRA) and the Government of Uganda.  Attendees included local 
politicians, religious and traditional leaders, donors, members of 
the diaspora, the military, non-governmental organizations, and 
media.  The Danish Ambassador stated that LRA leader Joseph Kony and 
the remnants of his forces should be dealt with on a regional basis, 
with the partners stressing the need to protect civilian 
populations.  He emphasized that the peace process resulted in an 
improved security situation in the north.  He urged the 
redevelopment of northern Uganda. 
 
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SECURITY UPDATE 
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¶3.  The joint military operation, now named "Rudia II," continued to 
make steady progress in pursuit of the LRA in northeastern 
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).  Captured LRA Lt. Col. Thomas 
Kwoyelo said that the military operation has disrupted LRA 
communications command control in an interview with the New Vision 
newspaper on April 26.  He said that Kony is not interested in a 
peace deal. 
 
¶4.  Uganda Peoples Defense Force (UPDF) spokesperson, Major Felix 
Kulayigye reported that the UPDF is evaluating reports of possible 
fresh supplies to the LRA rebels inside the DRC.  In March, the 
Sudan Peoples Liberation Army (SPLA) intercepted 13 trucks carrying 
food supplies from Uganda to Doruma, DRC, an area with an LRA 
presence.  The paperwork for the cargo indicated it was carrying 
supplies for CARITAS, a Catholic charity.  CARITAS denied that it 
was delivering food to the LRA.  Upon investigation, the UPDF found 
that the shipment documentation was fake and that CARITAS was not 
involved.  The investigation is ongoing. 
 
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HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE AND ECONOMIC RECOVERY 
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¶5.  Our Gulu field office advisor reports that the security 
situation remains calm in the LRA-affected districts of the north. 
The return of internally-displaced persons (IDPs) and recovery and 
reconstruction activities continue.  The joint military operation in 
DRC is a distant concern for residents in northern Uganda.  IDP 
return figures remain strong with UNHCR reporting 538,000 
individuals having returned to their villages of origin in the four 
Acholi districts of Gulu, Amuru, Kitgum, and Pader. 
 
¶6.  The major source of conflict affecting the recovery process is 
land disputes.  Deaths are regularly reported as a result of land 
disputes across LRA-affected districts.  The most serious problems 
are reported in Gulu, Pader, and Amuru districts.  Other areas 
outside the Acholi sub-region are also reporting incidents.  USAID 
has implemented programming designed to engage local communities on 
these issues, including through the "No Violence Over Land" public 
outreach campaign activity under the Northern Uganda Transition 
Initiatives (NUTI) program and through the Pader Peace Forum 
project. 
 
¶7.  Gulu District Chairman Norbert Mao hosted a meeting with 
humanitarian assistance donors regarding the closure of camps in the 
district on April 15.  At the meeting, Mao emphasized that camp 
closure and returns will be conducted according to the camp 
phase-out guidelines issued by the Office of the Prime Minister 
(OPM).  He further emphasized that activities related to camp 
phase-out and returns must be coordinated with the district 
government.  He noted that a key to securing resettlement was 
provision of basic services such as health and education.  He stated 
in the meeting that he had requested USAID to expand its support in 
 
KAMPALA 00000463  002.2 OF 003 
 
 
the education sector.  Mao also noted that the district was planning 
to set up a fund to support landless and Extremely Vulnerable 
Individuals (EVIs) who continue to live in the camps.  He requested 
donors consider supporting the fund.  He also noted that a list of 
landowners requesting compensation for use of their land for IDP 
camps had been submitted by all Chief Administrative Officers (CAOs) 
in the region to the Ministry of Lands. 
 
¶8.  USG Activities: In support of the USAID's country strategy 
development process, USAID health and education staff from Kampala 
joined implementing partners in assessment visits to seven districts 
in the Acholi and Lango regions of the north.  The objective of the 
trip was to consider USAID/Uganda's support to seven Peace, 
Recovery, and Development Plan (PRDP) districts in the areas of 
planning, coordination and service delivery.  The team met with 
local government officials and beneficiaries in the field.  The 
results of the trip have been consolidated into recommendations for 
the U.S. Mission.  A major focus is to improve coordination with the 
existing district development planning processes. 
 
¶9.  USAID's conflict advisor reviewed nine activities in the area of 
economic conflict mitigation under USAID's Stability, Peace, and 
Reconciliation in Northern Uganda (SPRING) program during a field 
visit to Gulu, Kitgum, Pader, and Lira the week of April 1.  The 
advisor noted that SPRING's economic activities appeared to be good 
initiatives.  However, more effort needed to be placed on 
integrating these activities with other components of the program 
such as access to justice and peace and reconciliation.  Another 
recommendation was the need for smaller grants to Ugandan 
community-based organizations to improve the community impact of the 
SPRING activities. 
 
¶10.  USAID/SPRING, in partnership with the Ugandan Veterinary 
Association (UVA) and the Ministry of Agriculture, organized a week 
of events to celebrate World Veterinary Day on Saturday April 25 as 
part its on-going support to the promotion of private veterinary 
services in northern Uganda.   Activities included free vaccination 
services in Gulu and Amuru Districts for areas not covered under 
Veterinary Civil Affairs Project exercises conducted by Combined 
Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa (CJTF-HOA).   SPRING sponsored a 
livestock farmer training in Gulu for 100 farmer group 
representatives on "Livestock Management and Disease Surveillance", 
radio talk shows hosted by the District Veterinary Office and the 
UVA, and animal check points to advise on proper animal transport. 
The occasion marked the first time World Veterinary Day has been 
launched in northern Uganda.  The activity not only furthered the 
goal of ensuring economically productive livestock in the north, but 
also contributed to stabilization efforts in northern Uganda. 
 
¶11.  USAID's Livelihoods and Enterprises for Agricultural 
Development (LEAD) program completed an assessment of the 
agriculture input sector in Uganda as part of its efforts to improve 
quality of inputs including equipment, fertilizers and pesticides to 
farmers.  Key findings included:  Uganda's per hectare fertilizer 
use is one of the lowest in the world, resulting in lower crop 
yields; farmers are not well informed about the use of agricultural 
inputs; the input dealer network in Uganda is poorly organized and 
dealers lack the knowledge or technical skills to properly advise 
farmer clients on the use of inputs; counterfeit inputs abound and 
regulation is weak.  Of importance to reconstruction and development 
in the north was the finding that rural farmers lack access to 
inputs, the quality is poor, and dealer infrastructure is 
non-existent in rural areas.  Sixty percent of LEAD activities are 
conducted in the north in PRDP-targeted districts and as such the 
assessment placed emphasis on the north.  The LEAD program is using 
the information gathered to tailor its farmer training and is also 
developing other interventions based on the information. 
 
¶12.  USAID/Office of Transition Initiatives (OTI) approved four 
grants in April.  These included support for reconciliation 
activities, including traditional fireside chats, a program 
supporting the government's attempt to diminish land violence in 
Amuru, and support to the Gulu and Amuru district engineers for 
supplying computers and training on critical information technology 
programs.  Important events were the inauguration of Amuru Alero 
primary schools which were fully rehabilitated and provided with 
teacher housing and a kitchen; the handover of bicycles to village 
leaders in Agoro sub-county, Kitgum District; and a consultative 
meeting at the Kitgum District Local Council levels of leadership on 
the preparation of their plans for the PRDP.  Also, traditional 
cleansing ceremonies in areas to purify the land and facilitate IDP 
returns were ongoing across the north.  To date, USAID/OTI has been 
able to work directly with 81,000 people across the north in its 
various activities. 
 
KAMPALA 00000463  003.2 OF 003 
 
 
HOOVER