ADVANCING SERVICE DELIVERY AND CLIMATE JUSTICE IN WEST NILE REGION
THE ARUA CITY SUMMIT RESOLUTION
3rd October 2025
Executive Summary
This policy brief outlines critical advocacy areas for enhancing service delivery and climate justice in West Nile, drawing from citizen engagement findings, community awareness sessions, and national development frameworks. Key issues include limited stakeholder participation in policy processes, inadequate local revenue mobilization, gaps in climate-responsive planning and budgeting, misalignment of planning tools, and weak enforcement of natural resource protections. Recommendations focus on collaborative management, resource planning, and strengthened accountability within WENDA. Intentional action through WENDA's structures is essential to drive predictable development outcomes, aligning with Uganda's Fourth National Development Plan (NDPIV) and FY 2025/26 budget priorities.
Introduction
Development is not accidental but a deliberate process governed by cause and effect. As Peter F. Drucker notes, "Every decision is like surgery. It is an intervention into a system and therefore carries with it the risk of shock." Similarly, the Law of Cause and Effect underscores that underdevelopment leaves tracks, while Brian Tracy advises, "If you do what other successful people (Regions, Countries….) do, over and over again, nothing in the world can stop you from eventually getting the same results that they do. And if you don't, nothing can help you." These principles guide advocacy in West Nile, where systemic interventions can foster resilience, equity, and sustainable growth amid climate challenges.
West Nile faces vulnerabilities from climate variability, resource degradation, and limited inclusion in national processes. Findings from Citizens Engagement Meetings (CEMs) and community awareness sessions across Nebbi, Packwach, Koboko, Yumbe, Moyo, Maracha, and Madi-Okollo highlight the need for targeted advocacy to align local efforts with national frameworks like NDPIV, which emphasizes climate mainstreaming, decentralization, and resource management.
Key Advocacy Areas
1Strengthening Stakeholder Participation in Policy-Making Processes
Limited community inclusion in consultations undermines effective policy implementation. CEMs reveal gaps in engaging populations, particularly those adjacent to protected areas. Advocacy should demand policy review roadmaps from line ministries and increased budget allocations for consultations, targeting the National Land Policy (2013) and Wildlife Policy (2014). This aligns with NDPIV's that call for decentralizing planning to parishes, enhancing community accountability through Barazas, and mainstreaming cross-cutting issues like climate change into local government development plans.
2Enhancing Local Revenue Generation and Mobilization
Local governments in West Nile require stronger revenue streams to fund activities independently. Nationally, local government revenue from own sources is projected at UGX 328.6 billion for FY 2025/26, representing just 0.5% of the total budget envelope of UGX 72.376 trillion. This underscores the urgency for West Nile districts to boost mobilization through automated systems, capacity building, and innovative sources like climate finance. NDPIV highlights automating local revenue and training investment committees to support Local Economic Development (LED), reducing reliance on central transfers.
Strengthen efforts to Local Revenue Generation/Mobilization to fund Local Government activities. (See the Local Revenue Projections in UG Shillings for the Current 2025/2026)
3Promoting Climate-Responsive Planning and Budgeting at Local Government Level
To foster local climate financing and resilience, West Nile local governments must integrate climate considerations into planning, avoiding penalties from non-compliance with climate certificates. The National Planning Authority (NPA) should prioritize capacity building for periodic climate finance monitoring over mere auditing, as emphasized in recent trainings. A March 2025 training for CSOs in West Nile, held March 24-26 at Desert Breeze Hotel, focused on empowering officials for climate-responsive budgets.
NDPIV supports this through mainstreaming climate screening in projects, training in Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) for over 50,000 farmers, and initiatives like the Local Climate Adaptive Capacity (LoCAL) Project (UGX 21.8 billion, 2024/25-2025/26). Goals include increasing Physical Development Plan (PDP) compliance from 15% to 50% and budget alignment to NDP priorities from 71.4% to 90% by FY 2029/30.
4Aligning Program Implementation Action Plans (PIAPs) with the Program Budgeting System (PBS)
The PBS remains procedural, failing to measure performance in climate adaptation and mitigation. Advocacy should engage NPA to align PIAPs with PBS for clear input-output-impact relationships. NDPIV mandates this alignment, decentralizing PIAP formulation and linking to Programme-Based Budgeting System (PBBS) for fiscal realism and results tracking. This includes annual reviews, capacity building for MDAs/LGs, and integrating M&E systems to enhance coordination and budget credibility.
5Enhancing Enforcement and Regulation Around Natural Resources
Weak enforcement exacerbates wetland degradation and resource loss. Plan dissemination of National Climate Change Integration Guidelines at district and lower levels. Increase Environment Protection Police staffing—West Nile Regional Police has only three qualified officers. Develop Wetland Management Plans from the Albert Nile Catchment Management Plan.
NDPIV prioritizes restoring forests/wetlands (targeting forest cover to 15%, wetland to 12% by FY 2029/30), promoting sustainable technologies, and community-based risk management. Access funds like the Green Climate Fund for resilient agriculture and urban greening.
Recommendations to WENDA Executive Council
- Enhance collaborative forest management arrangements in the region.
- Develop Natural Resource Management Plans tailored to West Nile's ecosystems.
- Strengthen accountability mechanisms, including regular reports from District Natural Resource Officers (DNROs) on actions from WENDA resolutions, reports from District Chairpersons on member actions, and reports from Deans on resolution implementations. These align with NDPIV's emphasis on coordination, capacity building, and sustainable resource use.
Conclusion
As the Columbus anecdote illustrates: "When Columbus set off seeking a route to India, he didn't know where he was going. When he arrived in America, he didn't know where he was. And when he got back to Spain, he didn't know where he had been." West Nile cannot afford such ambiguity. Intentional strategic changes, leveraging existing policy, legal, and institutional frameworks, are vital. Through WENDA, we must raise our voices to realize equitable development, climate justice, and resilience.
DEVELOPING THE REGION TOGETHER