The government says more than 13,000 people are living in landslide-prone areas of Bugisu, with Shs62 billion allocated for the relocation exercise expected to begin on Wednesday.
The government will begin relocating households living in landslide-prone areas of the Bugisu sub-region on Wednesday, with each household set to receive Shs18 million to move to safer locations.
The decision was reached on Tuesday during an emergency meeting convened by Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja with Members of Parliament from the Bugisu sub-region at her office in Kampala.
The meeting followed a Cabinet resolution on October 5, 2026, during which President Yoweri Museveni directed the Prime Minister to ensure the immediate resettlement of people living in areas at risk of landslides.
According to Nabbanja, an assessment by the Office of the Prime Minister’s Department of Disaster Preparedness found that more than 13,000 people were living in landslide-prone areas and needed to relocate to avert further disasters.
The government has allocated Shs62 billion for the exercise.
Nabbanja said each beneficiary household would receive a one-off payment to facilitate the purchase of land and relocation to safer areas.
“Therefore, Cabinet, chaired by His Excellency Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, resolved to provide households in landslide-prone areas Shs18 million each as a one-off payment for resettlement,” Nabbanja said.
She added that beneficiaries would be required to use the money to acquire land in safer locations.
“The beneficiary households are required to use the resettlement package to purchase land in safer locations in the Bugisu sub-region or elsewhere in Uganda,” she said.
Members of Parliament from Bugisu welcomed the government’s decision, saying the relocation exercise would help protect residents facing the threat of landslides.
Nabbanja said she would travel to Mbale on Wednesday and begin with Namisindwa District to oversee the exercise and ensure the resettlement programme proceeds as planned.
The relocation initiative comes amid concerns over the safety of communities living in landslide-prone parts of eastern Uganda, where vulnerable settlements face the risk of destructive landslides, particularly during periods of heavy rainfall.