We are committed to ensuring sustainable management of Uganda's water and environment resources for the benefit of present and future generations. Our mission is to promote and ensure the rational and sustainable utilization of water and environment resources for socio-economic development.
Our Mission Statement:
To promote efficient and effective utilization of water and environment resources for a healthy, wealthy and climate resilient population
Vision Statement:
Transformed Ugandan Society with environment and natural resources sustainably managed.
Minister of Water & Environment
Minister of State for Environment
Minister of State for Water
Minister of Water & Environment
Minister of State for Environment
Minister of State for Water
Kaabong/Karenga - The Ministry of Water and Environment through the Department of Forestry Management has commenced the review of the Forest Management Plan (FM...
ENTEBBE, Uganda - piece of timber may look like ordinary wood, but inside its cells lies evidence th...
The Ministry of Water and Environment (MWE), through the Regional Centre – South West, in partnershi...
The Ministry of Water and Environment (MWE), through the Multi-purpose and Bulk Water Development (M...
ICRP Project Overview The Irrigation for Climate Resilience Project (ICRP) aims to support the shift towards more resilient agriculture through the development of sustainable irrigation services. Access to irrigation is critical to allow farmers coping with climate variability, to increase yield and intensification, and diversify towards higher value crops. The project will address Uganda’s climate change vulnerabilities by: (i) promoting adoption of irrigation by smallholder farmers, in synergy with other agriculture inputs and technologies; (ii) increasing water storage capacity; and (iii) promoting sustainable catchment management. This change will be market-driven, with irrigation becoming the anchor for stronger producer organizations and development of value chains. The project is implemented by the Ministry of Water and Environment (MWE), with the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF) as technical implementation partner. Project Development Objectives To provide farmers with access to irrigation and other agricultural services, and to establish management arrangements for irrigation service delivery.
The Water Supply and Sanitation Project III (WSSP III) is a significant initiative of the Government of Uganda (GoU), primarily through the Ministry of Water and Environment (MWE). Building on previous phases, this project receives substantial funding from the African Development Bank (AfDB) Group and aims to significantly expand access to water supply and sanitation services across targeted areas in Uganda. Core Objective The core objective of WSSP III is to increase access to sustainable water supply and sanitation services in small towns and rural growth centers, and to enhance the capacity for effective management of water resources. This contributes to improved public health, economic development, and overall well-being of the beneficiary communities. Funding and Implementation: Funding: The project is primarily funded by the African Development Bank (AfDB) Group, including significant contributions from the African Development Fund (ADF) and the Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Initiative (RWSSI) Trust Fund. Total Cost: The total project cost is approximately UA 50.13 million (equivalent to roughly US$70-75 million depending on exchange rates at the time of approval). Implementing Agencies: The Ministry of Water and Environment (MWE) is the executing agency, responsible for overall coordination and implementation. The National Water and Sewerage Corporation (NWSC) is typically involved in urban water supply components, while MWE handles rural water supply and sanitation directly or through local governments. Duration: Projects of this nature generally have an implementation period of around 5 years. Project Area and Beneficiaries: WSSP III targets various small towns and rural growth centers (RGCs) across Uganda, aiming to extend water and sanitation services to populations currently underserved. The specific towns and regions vary per phase, but the focus is generally on improving living conditions and economic opportunities in these areas. While a comprehensive list of all specific towns might be extensive, the project typically focuses on a cluster of towns in different regions. The project directly benefits: Residents of targeted small towns and RGCs: Gaining improved access to safe and reliable water and sanitation. Local businesses and institutions: Benefiting from better infrastructure and healthier communities. Women and children: Who often bear the primary burden of water collection and are most vulnerable to water-borne diseases. Key Components and Activities: WSSP III typically comprises several key components aimed at achieving its objectives: Urban and Rural Water Supply Infrastructure Development: Construction and rehabilitation of water supply systems: This includes new boreholes, bulk water treatment plants, pumping stations, storage reservoirs, and extensive distribution networks within the targeted towns and RGCs. Extension of water pipelines: Connecting more households, institutions, and public facilities to the piped water supply. Sanitation and Hygiene Promotion: Construction of public sanitation facilities: Building improved public latrines, especially in markets, schools, and health centers. Promotion of household sanitation: Encouraging and supporting communities in constructing improved household latrines. Hygiene promotion campaigns: Raising awareness about safe hygiene practices, handwashing, and water handling to prevent waterborne diseases. Water Resources Management and Environmental Safeguards: Strengthening water resource monitoring: Improving data collection and analysis on water quality and quantity. Water source protection: Implementing measures to safeguard critical water sources from pollution and degradation. Environmental and social management: Ensuring project activities comply with national and international environmental and social safeguard standards. Institutional Development and Capacity Building: Strengthening service providers: Providing technical assistance and training to local water authorities and private operators for sustainable operation and maintenance of WSS facilities. Community management: Empowering communities to participate in the planning, implementation, and management of water points and sanitation facilities. Sector policy and regulatory support: Supporting MWE in refining policies and regulations for the water and sanitation sector.
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ABOUT FIEFOC-3 The Government of Uganda through the Ministry of Water and Environment (MWE) is implementing the development of three- medium sized irrigation schemes in northern and eastern regions of Uganda, covering an irrigable area of 1,800 hectares. The irrigation schemes are developed at Unyama (700 ha) in Amuru and Gulu Districts, Sipi (400 ha) in Bulambuli District, and Namalu (700 ha) in Nakapiripirit District under a project code – named Farm Income Enhancement and Forest Conservation Programme – Project 3 (FIEFOC-3). The five –year public sector investment (2023-2028) was designed within the context of the Government of Uganda’s Third National Development Plan (NDP III) and the long –term development strategy, the Vision 2040 both of which promote agricultural infrastructure development, agro-industrialization and household incomes. The project was also designed following a successful completion of FIEFOC-1, which ended in December 2012 and FIEFOC-2 to be completed by December 2025 respectively. The contribution of FIEFOC-3 is hinged on water sector performance indicator that focuses on harnessing irrigation potential of Uganda for increased agricultural production and productivity and household incomes (Sustainable Development Goal 2), and improving access to Sustainable Water Systems (Sustainable Development Goal 6). PROJECT DEVELOPMENT OBJECTIVE The project development objective is to contribute to poverty reduction and economic growth of Uganda through enhanced agricultural productivity and commercialization, thereby improving household incomes, food security and climate resilience through sustainable natural resources management and agricultural enterprise development. DEVELOPMENT PARTNERS The key financiers of the project are the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) with financial support of USD 86.5 million and Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA) with USD 15.0 million with counterpart funding from the Government of Uganda of USD 10.62 million, totaling USD 112.12million. The project is jointly implemented by the MWE and the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF). PROJECT LOCATION The project is implemented in the northern and eastern regions of Uganda, where three irrigation schemes are developed: Unyama in Amuru and Gulu Districts, Namalu in Nakapiripirit District and Sipi in Bulambuli District. Activities under the Integrated Natural Resources Management (INRM) and Agribusiness Development (AbD) Components are implemented across 19 districts within the project catchment areas. PROJECT COMPONENTS The four major project components include: Agricultural Infrastructure Development Agribusiness Development Integrated Natural Resources Management Project Management and Coordination Other components include Project Finance, Project Steering Committee and Technical Team inspecting proposed site of Sipi Irrigation Scheme in Bulambuli District 3 Auditing, and Contingency Emergency Response (CER) , thus making a total of 7 project components. PROJECT DESCRIPTION Agriculture Infrastructure Development (AID) component focuses on implementation of three major sub-components. These include: Irrigation infrastructure development Sustainable management of irrigation schemes through establishments of Farmer Based Organizations (FBO) Irrigated agronomy, as well as soil and land improvements for training farmers on modern agricultural practices. Agribusiness Development (AbD) component focuses on (i) value chain support including marketing, agribusiness needs assessment, scoping surveys, promotion of horticulture and aquaculture in irrigation schemes and catchment areas; (ii) training of farmer groups, individual farmers and community-based organizations on commodity collective marketing, financing accessibility, agribusiness skills, food processing technologies, post-harvest handling and management; and (iii) training on sustainable utilization of crop value – addition equipment and establishment of demonstration plots for climate smart agricultural practices. Integrated Natural Resources Management (INRM) component focuses on interventions that target restoration of selected degraded lands and river banks within the irrigation catchment areas, depending on the level of deforestation and status of environmental degradation. This means INRM activity is implemented in 19 districts located within the watershed of the river systems feeding the irrigation schemes as shown in Table 1 below: Table 1. Districts located within the catchment areas. Catchment Area | Districts | No. of Districts | Irrigation Scheme Unyama catchment | Adjumani, Amuru, Gulu and Nwoya | 4 | Unyama Irrigation Scheme Namalu catchment | Moroto, Napak, Nakapiripirit, Nabilatuk, Katakwi, Soroti, Ngora Kumi, and Amuria | 9 | Namalu Irrigation Scheme Sipi Catchment | Amudat, Bukedea, Bukwo, Kapchorwa, Bulambuli, and Sironko. | 6 | Sipi Irrigation Scheme The major project beneficiaries include communities living in degraded lands, farmers adopting agro-forestry practices and conservation farming, as well as technical staff trained in sustainable conservation and tree planting. Project Management and Coordination (PMC) component provides resources for the establishment and operations of project coordination unit based in Kampala, and regional project implementation units located at project areas; coordinate mid – term reviews, organize exposure visits for good practices in irrigation schemes management and business model assessment of irrigation and drainage systems. Project Financial Audit Services provides financial audit services to the project, including examination of project financial expenditures, special accounts and bank statements. The Office of the Auditor General of Uganda is mandated by the Constitution of the Republic of Uganda to undertake financial audit of public funds. It will be in charge of auditing the project either through its own resources or external independent auditing firms. The project audit year will be in accordance with the Government Budget Year. Contingency Emergency Response Component is embedded as a stand – alone component. The component comes into force when there is an emergency during project implementation and the Government wishes to reallocate funds in accordance with the Bank’s procedures. Table 2. Key Result Framework Indicators No. | Outcome Indicators (2028) | Measure 1 | Percentage increase in number of farmers applying advanced irrigation techniques | 0 -50% 2 | Percentage increase in yields of major crops | 25-50% 3 | Percentage increase in improvement of rural household incomes. | 25-50% 4 | Percentage increase in farmers’ incomes. | 0 (U$788) – 32% (USD 1039) 5 | Percentage increase in water efficiency for secondary canals. | 50-70% 6 | Percentage increase in water efficiency for tertiary canals. | 45-80% 7 | Number of small medium enterprises established and promoted. | 328 | Output Indicators (2027) | 1 | Number of medium sized irrigation schemes constructed in northern and eastern regions. | 3 2 | Total area of land developed under 3 irrigation schemes at Unyama (Amuru and Gulu districts), Namalu (Nakapiripirit district), and Sipi (Bulambuli district). | 2900 ha 3 | Length of irrigation and drainage canals constructed | 360 km 4 | Number of machineries provided per scheme | 7 met stations, 7 office blocks, 10 tractors, 8 backhoes and 4 excavators 5 | Number of gender responsive Farmer Based Management Organizations (FBMO) / Water User Associations (WUA) established. | 8 (30% women and 10% youth) 6 | Number of farmers trained in entrepreneurship, business skills, value addition and post – harvest handling technologies. | 15,200 7 | Number of farmers linked to markets | 12,700 8 | Number of trees plants (seedlings) distributed to farmers. | 11 million 9 | Number of project beneficiaries trained in natural resources management. | 20,360 10 | Number of districts under, which INRM catchment activities will be implemented. | 19
The EU-TF (SPRS-NU) Support Programme to the Refugee Settlements and Host Communities in Northern Uganda is a multifaceted initiative established under the European Union Emergency Trust Fund for Africa. Its primary objective is to address the humanitarian and developmental needs of South Sudanese refugees and their host communities in Northern Uganda, particularly in response to the significant influx of refugees since July 2016. The project aims to move beyond emergency aid towards more sustainable solutions, fostering stability and reducing the risk of conflict between refugee and host populations. Overall Objective and Specific Aims The overarching objective of SPRS-NU is to reduce the risk of violent conflict between host communities and refugees in the refugee-hosting districts of Northern Uganda. More specifically, the project aims to: Improve food security, nutrition, and livelihoods of both refugee populations and host communities in a sustainable manner, by enhancing local production and fostering economic exchanges. Improve inter-community dialogue at the local level and establish conflict prevention mechanisms to mitigate clashes between or within communities. Improve the level of education and increase medium to long-term economic opportunities for refugees and host communities, especially youth and women, through skills development and entrepreneurship support, contributing to better integration. Ensure sustainable access to safe water and improve environmental sanitation conditions in targeted settlements and host communities. Project Components The SPRS-NU project is structured around several key components, often implemented by different partners to achieve its comprehensive objectives: Livelihood and Labor Market Relevant Skills Development: Focuses on providing quality skills training, entrepreneurial guidance, and start-up kits for refugees and host communities, with a particular emphasis on youth, women, and girls. This includes vocational training and accreditation of acquired skills. Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) Component: Concentrates on constructing and rehabilitating essential water supply systems (e.g., piped water systems), improving environmental sanitation through the construction of faecal sludge treatment plants, and establishing sustainable operation and maintenance structures for these facilities. Community Dialogue and Conflict Prevention: Aims to facilitate improved relations between refugees and host communities through dialogue mechanisms and the establishment of local conflict prevention initiatives. Basic Services and Education: Supports improved access to essential services like education, recognizing its role in long-term economic opportunities and integration. Key Activities and Progress Within the WASH component, the project has specifically targeted 12 settlements, including Alere, Nyumanzi, Maaji II, Olujobo, Ranch I, Ayelo, Maaji III, Pagirinya, Bidibidi Zone V, Eden, Afua, and Ariaze. The project has undertaken a range of activities to achieve its aims: Skills Development: Provision of technical vocational education and training (TVET) and entrepreneurship support, with thousands of beneficiaries receiving quality skills development and start-up kits. WASH Infrastructure: Construction of piped water supply systems and faecal sludge treatment plants, alongside geological and hydrological surveys and drilling of production wells in various settlements (e.g., Alere, Nyumanzi, Maaji II, Ranch I). Feasibility Studies and Designs: Ongoing detailed engineering designs for water and sanitation infrastructure in several settlements. Inter-Community Dialogue: Facilitating platforms for dialogue and conflict prevention. Mid-term Reviews: Periodic reviews (e.g., November 2023) assess project performance, coherence, efficiency, effectiveness, impact, and sustainability, providing insights for continuous improvement and learning. Impact and Legacy The EU-TF (SPRS-NU) project has played a crucial role in addressing the complex challenges arising from large refugee populations in Northern Uganda. By focusing on both immediate needs and long-term development, it contributes significantly to: Enhanced Livelihoods: Equipping refugees and host communities with practical skills and entrepreneurial knowledge, thereby increasing their economic opportunities and reducing reliance on subsistence agriculture. Improved Social Cohesion: Mitigating potential conflicts by fostering better understanding and shared benefits between refugee and host communities. Access to Essential Services: Providing sustainable access to safe water and improved sanitation, which are fundamental for public health and environmental well-being. Sustainable Development: Laying a foundation for more resilient and self-reliant communities, aligning with Uganda’s Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework (CRRF) and broader development goals. While some components of the project have concluded their initial phases, the overall program’s integrated approach and its focus on sustainable solutions continue to inform and shape future interventions in refugee-hosting areas of Uganda.
ICRP Project Overview The Irrigation for Climate Resilience Project (ICRP) aims to support the shift towards more resilient agriculture through the development of sustainable irrigation services. Access to irrigation is critical to allow farmers coping with climate variability, to increase yield and intensification, and diversify towards higher value crops. The project will address Uganda’s climate change vulnerabilities by: (i) promoting adoption of irrigation by smallholder farmers, in synergy with other agriculture inputs and technologies; (ii) increasing water storage capacity; and (iii) promoting sustainable catchment management. This change will be market-driven, with irrigation becoming the anchor for stronger producer organizations and development of value chains. The project is implemented by the Ministry of Water and Environment (MWE), with the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF) as technical implementation partner. Project Development Objectives To provide farmers with access to irrigation and other agricultural services, and to establish management arrangements for irrigation service delivery.
The Water Supply and Sanitation Project III (WSSP III) is a significant initiati...
ABOUT FIEFOC-3 The Government of Uganda through the Ministry of Water and Enviro...
The EU-TF (SPRS-NU) Support Programme to the Refugee Settlements and Host Commun...
The Ministry of Water and Environment is committed to avoiding, minimizing, and mitigating adverse environmental and social impacts associated with its projects, as well as adopting a gender-sensitive and gender-equitable approach for all its projects.
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