Kampala, Uganda: Speaker of Parliament Rt Hon Annet Anita Among has called for greater recognition of women in pastoral communities, saying their role remains central yet often overlooked in Africa’s rangeland and livestock economy.
Speaking at Speke Resort Munyonyo during the closing of the African Pastoralist Women Gathering and launch of the African Rangelands and Pastoralists Women Charter on Wednesday, Hon Among said any meaningful discussion on pastoralism must place women at the centre.
“Oftentimes, discussions of rangelands and pastoralism in Africa focus mainly on men, yet the story is incomplete without women,” she said.
Ms Among emphasized that pastoralist women play critical roles in animal care, food production, household resilience, and peacebuilding, yet remain largely invisible in policy and decision-making spaces.
“Any discussion about improving the plight of pastoralists must recognise the contribution and importance of women in the struggle for sustainable livelihoods,” she noted. “I am a pastoralist woman myself. I have cattle, so these issues are pertinent to me.”
The Speaker conveyed greetings from President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, affirming government support for pastoral communities through policies such as the National Land Policy and the National Climate Change Act 2021.
She credited government interventions, including disarmament in Karamoja and cross-border collaboration with Kenya, for reducing livestock theft and improving stability in rangelands. “Today, incidences of livestock theft have significantly reduced, while interventions are underway to diversify livelihoods,” she said.
The gathering attracted over 200 participants from across Africa, including representatives from Benin, Cameroon, Kenya, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda.
Among said the event reflects a shared continental vision anchored in unity and “Ubuntu.” “The future of Africa requires such unity in the spirit of ‘Ubuntu’—I am because we are,” she said.
She further highlighted that 44% of Uganda’s land—about 84,000 square kilometres—is rangeland, supporting over 6.6 million people, mainly within the cattle corridor stretching across multiple regions.
Ms Among outlined persistent challenges affecting pastoralists, particularly women, including land grabbing and insecure communal land tenure, climate change and prolonged droughts, declining livestock productivity and food insecurity, limited veterinary services and pasture systems, weak policy understanding of pastoral systems and exclusion of traditional governance structures.
She urged stakeholders to focus on actionable solutions, including strengthening women’s leadership and agency, securing land rights for pastoral communities, enhancing climate resilience strategies, promoting sustainable food systems and recognising pastoral mobility as a fundamental right
Among acknowledged gaps in governance, data, and institutional support, calling for inclusive and evidence-based approaches. She strongly reaffirmed government commitment to supporting pastoral communities.
“As government of Uganda, we pledge to continue creating an enabling environment for pastoralism and rangelands to flourish,” she said.
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