Busoga Sub-Region has long been recognized as an area of immense potential. With its fertile soils, youthful population, strategic location along the Nile, and vibrant cultural heritage under the Busoga Kingdom, the sub-region should be among Uganda’s most economically dynamic areas. However, this is not the case. In fact, Associate Professor Paul Isiko Alexander, in his 2019 article titled “An Expository Study of Witchcraft among the Basoga of Uganda,” reveals that Busoga faces numerous challenges and concludes that it is one of the most impoverished regions in Uganda. What Isiko describes as Busoga’s impoverishment can be seen in the visible indicators of poverty, unending internal conflicts, youth unemployment, poor infrastructure, and limited industrial growth.
Surprisingly, Busoga politicians from the National Resistance Movement (NRM), who are meant to help the region develop and move out of impoverishment, are instead engaged in endless wars. This constant fighting projects a negative image of the entire sub-region. During a conversation with some people from Busoga, one remarked, “We as Basoga people need to pray for ourselves. Museveni has given our people positions, but fighting among themselves is the problem.” This statement reflects a growing public frustration.
In his 2023 work, “Identity Politics in Uganda,” Pius Gumisiriza argues that political misunderstandings in Uganda have taken an ugly identity dimension. Anyone who has followed media reports from Busoga can agree that the political misunderstandings in the region have indeed taken such a dimension. When leaders are at loggerheads, how can they effectively address the poverty and unemployment that continue to burden the people?
To make matters worse, as political leaders fight for reasons beyond this article, Martha Namasoga and her colleagues’ 2025 study revealed that some districts in Busoga lack essential teaching facilities, resulting in poor learning environments, indiscipline, and a decline in the quality of education. It is surprising that most of Busoga’s leading politicians who are fighting belong to the ruling NRM, a party that controls government resources. They are strategically positioned to influence national resource allocation, shape policy priorities, and lobby for transformative projects in the sub-region. Instead, they remain locked in endless wars. The pressing question remains: will Busoga politicians continue fighting among themselves, or will they use their position within the NRM to deliver tangible progress for the people they represent?
Ayub Mukisa, PhD
Executive Director, Karamoja Anti-Corruption Coalition (KACC)
Email: ayubmukisa@gmail.com
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