The Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF) recognises land fragmentation as a key challenge undermining agricultural productivity in Uganda. The problem is largely driven by rapid population growth and traditional inheritance practices. There is no specific policy framework directly targeting land fragmentation, leaving farmers to grapple with low efficiency, reduced yields, and declining household incomes, as Marko Taibot reports.
The worsening impacts of climate change – erratic rainfall, prolonged droughts, and floods – are not only undermining food production but also accelerating land fragmentation among rural communities in the West Nile region. As families struggle to adapt to dwindling agricultural yields, a quiet but devastating crisis is unfolding: land, the region’s most prized asset, is being divided into smaller and less productive plots across generations, deepening poverty and sparking land disputes.
Denis Kandaruku, a resident of Endrebamvaku East Village in Esia Parish, Adropi Sub-county, Adjumani District, has seen firsthand how climate change is indirectly driving the subdivision of family land as a survival strategy. With each harvest season growing increasingly unpredictable, Kandaruku says families like his are under pressure to adapt.
He explains that his family once owned about 10 acres of ancestral land. However, persistent flooding of the River Esia has claimed nearly four acres, leaving just six acres for cultivation. This loss has forced his family to share the remaining land among eight family members.
‘The land has become too small for us, and our productivity has greatly declined. During dry seasons, crops fail. We hardly open more than one acre for a single crop. I plant half an acre of maize, another half-acre of groundnuts, and the rest for simsim,’ he says.
Kandaruku’s experience highlights how climate shocks, like river flooding, are not only displacing farming communities from their fertile land but also reshaping land ownership patterns, making smallholder agriculture even more fragile.
Anthony Lali, a resident of Oninyaraku Village in Baratuku Parish, Itirikwa Sub-county, shared that floods have repeatedly destroyed his gardens over the past five years on his family’s ancestral land.
He explained that although his father’s family owns 30 acres, a portion has been eroded by the River Oninyaraku, leaving them overcrowded on the remaining land.
‘That land cannot support the entire extended family, including the children. In 2023, I planted beans and cassava near the river, but floods wiped out everything. For the five years I have farmed here, I have never harvested anything from my gardens. The rains submerge my crops, and during the dry season, the drought kills whatever survives,’ he explains.
Lali adds that his family is struggling with severe hunger. He needs money to pay school fees for his children, but without any harvest, there is nothing to sell.
Heavy toll
Charles Lagu, Adjumani District’s agriculture officer, notes that the effects of land fragmentation and climate change are taking a heavy toll on smallholder farmers, leaving many households on the brink of food insecurity.
With shrinking plots of land and declining soil fertility, families are spending nearly 75 percent of their earnings on food instead of producing enough to sell, a clear sign that livelihoods are deteriorating.
‘Due to the food crisis, only 20 percent of households get the recommended three meals in a day. About 70 percent cannot afford two meals, while ten percent can only get one meal per day,’ he notes.
Only 50 percent of households have less than 1.5 acres of land for production. About 30 percent of the households have between two to five acres of land for production.
‘Due to land fragmentation, only five percent of the farmers are able to use tractors in their gardens. The entire district has less than 30 tractors,’ Lagu adds.
The situation has been worsened by the growing refugee population that relies on the same limited food supplies.
Much of the land allocated to refugees is rocky and infertile, making farming nearly impossible. As a result, the little food produced is quickly consumed by both the host and refugee communities, leaving no surplus.
Severe erosion and seasonal flooding have further reduced productivity, forcing some families to sell off portions of their land or household assets just to buy food. ‘What we produce cannot sustain a household for six months. So, we sell off land and other goods to feed our families,’ one farmer lamented.
Malnutrition cases are rising as limited food intake translates into nutrient deficiencies, particularly among children. Lagu observes that the reduction in food assistance to refugees, now provided mostly as cash instead of rations, has only intensified pressure on the host community’s meager food stocks.
‘Families are forced to sell portions of their grain reserves to buy essentials like salt and cooking oil, or to pay school fees, further depleting household food security,’ he emphasizes.
Tradition and culture
According to Paulino Vuso, a Madi elder, land in traditional Madi society was never viewed as a commodity for sale or division, but as a collective resource to be used productively and preserved for future generations.
‘In our culture, land belongs to the clan. For instance, if you take away a large portion of Oyuwi land, can it still be called Oyuwi land? Selling land is a foreign concept. It was never a part of us,’ he explains.
Traditionally, displaced families, whether by war or natural calamities, would seek refuge from clan chiefs, who allocated them land to live on and cultivate, not to own or trade. In rare circumstances, land was exchanged symbolically, often tied to marriage alliances, not monetary transactions. Vuso laments that modern economic pressures have altered this deep-rooted cultural understanding.
‘As land becomes increasingly fragmented from one generation to the next, its ability to sustain livelihoods is diminished. Land is a factor of production. It should be used, not sold. When you divide it into tiny pieces, it loses value. You cannot grow crops on a quarter acre and expect to pay school fees from that,’ he says.
Beyond its economic value, land in Madi culture is also linked to environmental stewardship. The elders enforced traditional taboos that promoted conservation long before modern environmental laws existed.
‘For example, it was forbidden to cultivate near streams because we believed you would harm the spirits living in the water. Unknown to them, that belief protected the environment and prevented soil erosion and silting of water sources,’ the elder recalls.
Solutions
Despite acknowledging the growing challenge of land fragmentation in Obongi District, Gabriel Aliga is among the few farmers taking proactive steps to adapt.
He believes that adopting smart agriculture, promoting environmental compliance, and supporting community tree-planting initiatives are key interventions for ensuring sustainable farming practices in the region.
‘I have started planting trees on the other side of my farm, away from the river. I maintain a buffer zone because I do not want to disturb the environment along the waterline. I have established a small tree nursery on my land, and I plan to extend the initiative to neighbouring communities. We are preparing seedlings for the community so that every household can plant at least one fruit tree,’ he says.
To further promote sustainable resource use, Aliga encourages alternative sources of energy to reduce pressure on natural forests.
‘We prune branches from the trees we have planted for fuel instead of cutting down entire trees. We are also exploring new ways of conserving energy since firewood is becoming scarce,’ he explains.
From his farm, one can already see rows of young trees forming green belts between his gardens and the river, symbolising a community slowly learning to live in balance with nature despite the mounting pressures of land scarcity and climate change. In Yumbe District, smallholder farmers are struggling to cope with the twin challenges of land fragmentation and extreme weather patterns that are undermining agricultural productivity. Gard Feni, the district agriculture officer, explains that the changing climate is putting unprecedented pressure on land management and farming systems.
‘We experience two extremes in Yumbe: either there is too much rain or prolonged drought. This affects agriculture in many ways, especially land management and productivity. When rainfall is excessive, it leads to soil erosion, and when it is dry for too long, crops fail and the soil becomes hard and infertile,’ he notes.
To help farmers adapt, the district has introduced practices such as soil erosion control, land consolidation, and enterprise selection for high-value crops. Feni says that farmers are now digging trenches and constructing contour ridges, locally known as fanya juu, to control surface runoff and reduce erosion.
‘These methods help retain soil moisture and improve productivity. Land fragmentation remains one of the biggest obstacles to modern farming in Yumbe. The smaller the land gets, the less productive it becomes. However, when farmers consolidate land into block farms, they can practice sustainable agriculture, use machinery like tractors, and increase yield,’ Feni explains. The agricultural officer says the district is encouraging farmers to select high-value crops suited for small plots, such as fruits, vegetables, and oilseeds, to bring higher returns, rather than low-value staples that require large acreage.
Policies in place
The government, through various laws and policies, is also playing a critical role in regulating land use and promoting climate-smart practices. Rashid Ojoatre, Yumbe District’s Secretary for Lands, explains that the government oversees land management through the Land Act, the National Land Policy, and the Physical Planning Act (2010). These frameworks guide land ownership, acquisition, and use, and are designed to promote orderly settlement and sustainable development.
‘Government regulates how land is acquired, owned, and transferred. However, the law remains silent on land fragmentation, which has become a challenge for agricultural productivity. The Physical Planning Act provides for minimum land size requirements for certain types of construction and commercial activities.
‘Excessive land fragmentation makes it difficult to meet these standards,’ Ojoatre notes.
To tackle the effects of climate change, the government has integrated climate-smart agriculture (CSA) into all planning and development processes. Under the Uganda Climate Smart Agriculture Program, farmers are being encouraged to adopt crops that are drought-tolerant, mature faster, and can yield within one growing season.
‘We used to have two rainy seasons in Uganda, but now, we only have one. Farmers must plan accordingly, prepare land early, plant on time, and choose resilient crops to maximize yields,’ Ojoatre advises. While the challenges of climate change and land fragmentation remain significant, Yumbe District officials believe that with proper planning, sustainable land use, and farmer sensitisation, agricultural productivity can be restored.
The combination of traditional resilience and modern adaptation strategies offers hope that the district’s smallholder farmers can survive and even thrive in the face of an uncertain climate.