Gulu City, Uganda: Government has opted to pay UGX 5 million in cash to each household in Northern Uganda under its long-awaited cattle restocking programme, abandoning an earlier plan to distribute live animals to communities affected by past insurgencies.
The decision was taken during a Cabinet meeting held on December 5, 2025, and was disclosed on Monday by the State Minister for Northern Uganda Rehabilitation, Kenneth Olusegun Omona, while addressing leaders in Gulu City.
Omona said Cabinet resolved that cash payments would be more practical and flexible than distributing cattle across the sub-regions of Acholi, Lango and Teso.
“Giving cash is easier and more useful than giving cattle,” Omona said, citing logistical and operational challenges that would have overwhelmed the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries if live animals were procured and distributed.
He revealed that UGX 80 billion has already been earmarked and is readily available to kick-start the programme, which is expected to run for five years once implementation guidelines are finalised.
Omona added that the Permanent Secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister has written to Chief Administrative Officers to begin preparations for identifying beneficiaries. Once guidelines are approved, selected households will be supported to open bank accounts, with funds paid directly to beneficiaries, bypassing government agencies.
Shift From Earlier Cattle Plan
In October, during campaign engagements in the Acholi sub-region, President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni said he had agreed with regional committees from Acholi, Lango and Teso to restock communities that lost cattle during past conflicts, initially proposing five head of cattle per household.
However, while Lango and Teso reportedly agreed to focus solely on restocking, Acholi leaders proposed a hybrid approach, combining compensation for verified cattle loss claimants with restocking for other households.
Omona said Cabinet reviewed all submissions following consultations by an inter-ministerial committee constituted by the Prime Minister and agreed on restocking across all three sub-regions, but varied the mode of delivery in favour of cash payments.
The programme will be supervised by the Office of the Prime Minister through the ministries responsible for Northern Uganda and Teso affairs to ensure transparency and efficiency.
Concerns From Acholi Leaders
The shift has drawn criticism from some opinion leaders in Acholi. Rosalba Oywa, an opinion leader in Gulu City, said the move signals a lack of goodwill towards the region.
“If government was genuinely committed to restocking, it would stick to cattle,” Oywa told Uganda Radio Network. “Cattle provide long-term livelihood security, unlike cash which can easily be misused or lost.”
She also questioned the feasibility of the programme, citing delays in resolving historical grievances, including compensation for war debt claimants.
According to a 2024 report by the Government Assurance and Implementation Committee, there are 92,634 war debt claimants in Northern and Eastern Uganda. Of these, 16,946 are in Acholi, 42,024 in Lango, and 33,664 in Teso.
Meanwhile, the Uganda Bureau of Statistics 2024 National Population and Housing Census puts the Acholi sub-region’s population at 2,037,595, with 2,012,607 classified as household population.
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