Gulu City, Uganda: Former Uganda People’s Congress (UPC) presidential candidate Dr Olara Otunnu has challenged Acholi leaders to confront what he described as four major dimensions of poverty that continue to hold back social and economic transformation in the sub-region more than 20 years after the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) conflict.
Speaking during the launch of the book Nest of Poverty, authored by Richard Onencan Apil in Gulu City on Tuesday, Otunnu warned that poverty in Acholi extends beyond lack of income and has evolved into a broader existential challenge affecting the region’s future.
The former Ugandan Ambassador to the United Nations called upon cultural, political, religious, academic, and opinion leaders to take collective responsibility in addressing the underlying factors that continue to trap communities in poverty despite years of post-war recovery efforts.
“The Acholi people must come out of their comfort zones and confront the current existential problem of poverty that continues to hold back our society,” Otunnu said.
Four Dimensions of Poverty
Otunnu identified what he termed as four interconnected manifestations of poverty affecting the Acholi sub-region.
The first, he said, is material poverty, characterized by inadequate access to basic human needs such as food, decent housing, healthcare and clothing.
The second is poverty of knowledge and skills, which he said is reflected in limited access to quality education and skills training opportunities, leaving many young people unable to fully participate in the modern economy.
Third, Otunnu pointed to an identity crisis arising from the two-decade LRA insurgency that displaced thousands of people into camps and disrupted the transmission of cultural values, language and social norms from one generation to the next.
“The war created a generational gap. Many of the cultural values and traditions that would ordinarily be passed on were interrupted, leaving a vacuum among the younger generation,” he said.
The fourth form, which he described as moral poverty, is reflected in growing social challenges including alcoholism, child and teenage marriages, land sales driven by short-term interests, environmental degradation and criminality.
According to Otunnu, these factors have combined to undermine development efforts and perpetuate poverty across the region.
Dr Otunnu said the themes explored in Nest of Poverty accurately reflect the realities facing Acholi society today. He challenged what he described as the region’s “intelligentsia” and other leaders to move beyond rhetoric and take practical steps to address the challenges confronting the community.
The veteran diplomat argued that meaningful transformation would require leadership focused on the common good rather than personal interests.
The book launch attracted academics, former government officials and community leaders who echoed the need for collective action against poverty.
Gulu University Secretary David Obol Otori commended author Richard Onencan Apil for using literature to spark discussion on one of the region’s most pressing challenges.
Obol said while poverty remains a common subject in artistic and public discourse across Acholi, greater emphasis should now be placed on finding practical solutions. “There is widespread lamentation about poverty in Acholi, but addressing it requires collective responsibility from all stakeholders.”
Former Pader Resident District Commissioner Dusman Okee acknowledged the persistence of poverty but noted that government interventions had contributed to significant progress since the end of the insurgency.
He cited programmes such as Operation Wealth Creation (OWC) and other poverty alleviation initiatives as examples of efforts aimed at improving livelihoods and rebuilding communities across northern Uganda.
Okee argued that the Acholi region has undergone substantial transformation since the height of the LRA conflict and called for continued support for programmes that promote economic empowerment and household incomes.
The launch of Nest of Poverty comes amid ongoing debate about the pace of post-conflict recovery in northern Uganda and the challenges still facing communities seeking to rebuild after decades of instability.
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