Looking back: Insights into Northern Uganda with OA

By Erin Hunt

It’s been a few months since the end of our pilot project in Gulu, Uganda and with the reporting done, plans for Rwanda moving along and discussions just starting for the next phase in Uganda, we finally have a moment to reflect on our time in Uganda. This was my first project with OA but not my first time in Northern Uganda. I first arrived in Gulu in August 2006 right before the LRA and the government signed their ceasefire and after a number of work visits I moved up there for a while in 2007. So in a way this was a homecoming for me.

As you know, OA is working in Northern Uganda because the region is emerging from over 20 years of conflict. Communities are rebuilding themselves, both physically and emotionally. The first thing I noticed as we arrived back in Gulu after two years was the physical changes to the area. Families are rebuilding their homesteads in areas where it wouldn’t have been safe to stay even a night in 2006. In town, I cannot even count the number of new buildings, businesses and houses which have been built in just two years. Although there some new buildings, there is still a long way to go in the rebuilding process - most of our friends and colleagues do not have running water at home, health care is no where near adequate and the scars of conflict are still fresh and very apparent. But those are all topics for further blog posts, at the moment let’s just say that it’s a really exciting time in northern Uganda - the communities we are working with are rebuilding themselves but there is still so much left to do.