On 19th June 2026, Nakapiripirit District Local Government (NDLG) commemorated the World Environment Day at the Police public playground in the center of Namalu town.
The event was attended by the Nakapiripirit District Leadership led by the District Chairman Lokiru Simon Peter Lolim, Resident District Commissioner Ajilong Bessy, as well as District Officers from the Natural Resources and Community Development Departments and the Officer in Charge of Namalu Police Station. The Namalu local political leadership was led by the LC 3 Chairman of Namalu sub-county, Olaka Tom.
The event started with a community-led clean up of the town to clear it of excessive rubbish on the street as a response to the issue of garbage which was reported on several occasions by the Climate Action Champions in Namalu. Through the SEA-WNK Project[i], Africa Centre for Energy and Mineral Policy (ACEMP) provided some equipment and tools that included wheelbarrows, rakes, spades and brooms to facilitate the clean-up exercise. ACEMP also fabricated and set up a public garbage skip to encourage the town residents to properly dispose their rubbish.
Following the clean-up exercise, residents converged for a dialogue to discuss pertinent issues regarding the environment.
Florence Bako, the NDLG Senior Environment Officer, observed that bush burning has intensified mainly because of the prolonged dry season, while charcoal burning is also not slowing down. She gave an example of neighbouring Kaawach sub-county where the rate at which the trees are being cut is worrying. She requested the newly elected District Chairman to support her department in curbing commercial production of charcoal.
Ms. Bako also decried the lack of a common garbage collection point for the district. “Even if we picked all this rubbish, we would have nowhere to put it. We need to identify areas where this garbage can be properly disposed,” she said. Bako also encouraged the district leadership to explore creative ways of recycling the waste because it can be a resource or raw material.
Lorika Ronnie, the Namalu Sub-County Chief revealed that a private contractor had made a proposal to manage the waste for the Sub-County at a monthly fee which they could not afford.
In the discussions that ensured, the residents acknowledged their role in reversing the onslaught of climate change through individual and collective actions, including planting and nurturing trees. The event was crowned by presentation of a poem by students of Nakapiripirit Primary School, that urged residents to plant trees in order to mitigate the aggressive impact of climate change.
Observed annually on the fifth day of June, the World Environment Day seeks to raise global awareness about critical ecological issues and mobilize public action to protect the planet by addressing pressing challenges like climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution.
[i] The "Strengthening Environmental Accountability and Climate Action in West Nile and Karamoja" project is funded by the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) through Danida. The project is implemented in the districts of Zombo, Madi Okollo, Obongi, Adjumani, Amudat and Nakapiripirit by a consortium of four national organizations: RICE West Nile (lead implementer), Friends of Zoka, Sustainable Plan and Action for Community Empowerment (SPACE) and Africa Center for Energy and Mineral Policy (ACEMP)[i].
