UGANDA: ‘S NUSAF PROGRAMME: FROM NUSAF I TO NUSAF IV-PROGRESS MADE, CHALLENGES FACED, AND LESSONS LEARNED FROM $ 19 MILLION FOR ACHOLI SUB-REGION

The ultimate measure of NUSAF’s success should be whether survivors can rebuild identified self-reliant lives, not simply whether the allocated funds were spent. As we explore NUSAF’s achievements and accountability, or an interest-free rehabilitation loan model for the Acholi survivors?

The state minister for Northern Uganda, Beatrice Akello Akori, mooted that the social register for the poor will be the yardstick for the funding of the NUSAF IV in Acholi Sub Region. The World Bank indicated that the Northern Uganda Social Action Fund IV Project will be implemented by the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) as the lead implementing agency. OPM will also be responsible for coordinating the implementation of key project interventions under Components 1, 2 and 4. Building on the experience from previous NUSAF phases, implementation will be led by existing structures at the national and local government levels to ensure ownership and sustainability.

GULU CITY- WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2026

By Okumu Livingstone Langol. (Uganda Correspondent)

The NUSAF IV, launched in Acholi Sub Region as the priority to address the affected Acholi Sub Region, despite an estimated US$365 million invested in NUSAF I, II, and II, the central question remains whether these resources have translated into lasting improvement in the lives of Northern Uganda post-war conflict survivors.

Whether some investment risks becoming “White Elephants” due to weak sustainability, limited economic opportunity and inadequate long-term support. While the programmes aim to rebuild community infrastructure, restore livelihoods and strengthen household resilience, financial disbursement alone does not prove that communities have fully recovered economically or have access to psychological healing.

Or financially, as NUSAF IV is launched, greater emphasis should be placed on sustainable rehabilitation, psychosocial healing, and access to greater emphasis should be placed on sustainable rehabilitation, psychical healing affordable, survivor-centred financing exploring.

to affordable, survivor-centred financing, including exploring whether the Acholi community’s financial institutions could offer interest-free, zero-interest loans or revolving recovery funds to eligible survivors, with appropriate safeguards and flexible repayment arrangements.

On Wednesday, the Acholi Sub-region leaders convened to witness the much-awaited Northern Uganda Sustainable Action Programmes; every speaker who presented the programmes praised the NUSAF IV new programmes. However, a million questions still remain: why NUSAF IV?

Our Correspondent, Okumu Livingstone Langol, caught up with Fred Okecha for a one-on-one interview: Who are you, and where do you work?

Fred Okecha is my name. I am a Stakeholder Engagement Officer working with NUSAF IV in the Office of the Prime Minister.  NUSAF is a accesses project of NUSAF III, we recalled we have NUSAF I, II, III and IV its political demand from the leaders from Northern Uganda during political campaign in 2026 presidential and Parliamentary.

Secondly, looking at the problem that we have in Northern Uganda, the poverty level stands at 76 percent in the last census, 2024. Reason NUSAF IV is launched. Number one, NUSAF I and II came at the time of insurgency; they had Traditional reconciliation, conflict resolution and did cleansing on children coming from the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA).

NUSAF I and II have also constructed infrastructure development schools and health sectors, but this one has been launched to address household income. For example, buying goats, poultry and restocking livestock programmes.

Other tangible NUSAF IV programmes include the promotion of perennial crops like coffee, banana production, fish farming and Dairy farm production. And also providing jobs for youth who have acquired skilling, motor work fabrications, we are targeting youths within urban areas Gulu City and rural areas. Child-headed families, vulnerable women, widows, widowers, and older people.

The Minister of State for the Prime Minister’s Office, Hon. Beatrice Akello Akori, the Guest of Honour for the NUSAF IV launch, reiterated that NUSAF IV is going to empower 500,000 women in Acholi Sub-Region who are in the productive age group.

Hon. Akello Akori, stressed that, the NUSAF IV, is making a different by identifying the method of selective, wondered why the Government restocking the Parish chief can be the beneficiary, because they are mandated to be in charge of selection committee.

“With NUSAF IV, we have a social registry for the poorer from the villages, which the Uganda Bureau of Standards (UBOS) thought. Will be selected; the programmes will be monitored from village to village. The NUSAF IV $19 million will cover a five-year and two-month programme scope and has been earmarked to kick-start the programmes, because the Acholi Sub-region suffered.

The NUSAF IV will block and identify the people who keep getting the government programmes, those who have benefited from the government restocking, Emeyooga, Operation Wealth Creation (OPM), through the social registry, where the lists of all the beneficiaries will be available. The names will appear in the social registry once you have benefited.

“NUSAF IV is going to work; as of now in Acholi Inn, look at the local Government authority; the people in charge of NUSAF IV, they are getting training on how to handle the beneficiaries. The local government that we are training they are going to train NUSAF IV beneficiaries,” Okecha observed.

Our Correspondent raised the question to Fred Okecha, Strategy Engagement in the office of the Prime Minister, what remedies you have put in place about employing new NUSAF staff. How much administrative funds have you put aside for those, what percent is meant for community rehabilitation, and how much have you put for the buying of vehicles?

Fred Okecha argued that the technical staff have been recruited by the government as employees, but they will get the budget for the facilitation. “We are yet to discuss how much allocation for the production for the administration cost is not going to be earmarked.

For now, we are not going to provide the vehicles. “We will give two motorcycles for each NUSAF IV district for their facilitation to the focal point person who is in the government civil service. Under the Chief Administrative Officers for each district, who are called NUSAF Desk Officers”

The question that made Fred Okecha run away: how are you going to group the beneficiaries to avoid the NRM special groups, the corrupt official who thinks that when you are not NRM you should be the beneficiary. Who failed all the government programmes that have been initiated under the NRM regime?

The same question for NUSAF IV to succeed: we need the answer to why 9 sub-regions of Acholi, Lango, Teso, Karamoja, West Nile, Bunyoro, Bukedi, and Elgon sub-regions. implemented at the community level under the guidance and supervision of local government entities at the district, sub-county, parish, and village levels. At the regional and sub-regional levels, the project’s presence will be further strengthened to support the geographical expansion of the project implementation areas. Multi-sectoral technical planning committees (TPC) at the district and below will ensure that the project’s activities are appropriately planned, approved, and integrated into the budgets and work programs of the respective local governments and line ministries’ technical agencies.

At the district level, there will also be key positions such as the District Chief Administrative Officer and the NUSAF District Officer who will support the transmission of information to the regional and central level and coordination at the parish and village level.

The Parish-level presence of NUSAF IV will be further reinforced in alignment with the Parish Development Model (PDM) to further strengthen citizen engagement and responsiveness at the community level, building on the successful development of a range of key positions such as CDOs, community procurement officers, and local artisans.

Although OPM has no project experience with the ESF, it has experience with implementing Bank-financed projects (Development Response to Displacement Impacts Project (DRDIP (PI61067), and Northern Uganda Social Action Fund (NUSAF) (phase I (P002952), phase 2 (P111663) and phase 3 (P149965) based on the old Safeguards Operational Policies (OPs).

Its safeguards team have undertaken ESF training and also incorporated relevant ESF aspects into the projects that were implemented under the OPs. The proposed project is a continuation of the previous three NUSAF phases, and lessons learnt during implementation of these phases have informed the project design. Safeguards policy management under NUSAF 2 and 3 was mainly considered successful due to: i) well-established and defined capacity and implementation structure from national, district, sub-county to community level; ii) Incorporation of a Safeguards Management Information System module; iii) resource allocation for operations and the Environmental and Social Management Plan (ESMP) costs; iv) implementation of a stakeholder engagement and communication plan; v) a clear voluntary land donation Community Driven Development process; and vi) robust monitoring, reviews (including audits) and certification of completed sub-projects for compliance.