Cultural barriers prevent Karamoja women from accessing GROW project loans
Despite their critical contribution to the region’s economy, many women remain unable to access the approximately Shs 813 billion GROW project due to a lack of land titles
KOTIDO, May 16, 2025 –– In the arid plains of Karamoja Subregion, where women play a central role in agriculture and entrepreneurship, a quiet struggle continues — financial exclusion rooted in traditional customs. Despite their critical contribution to the region’s economy, many women remain unable to access the approximately Shs 813 billion GROW project due to a lack of land titles — documents most women in the region do not possess, owing to deeply entrenched land tenure systems.
Traditionally, land is owned by men, while women are the primary cultivators and business operators. Yet when they seek financial support to grow their farms or enterprises, they are often denied, excluded by a system ill-suited to their circumstances. This persistent inequality has sparked a growing chorus of advocacy from female leaders, policymakers, and entrepreneurs who argue that loan policies must reflect the unique cultural and social dynamics of Karamoja — or risk leaving half the region’s population behind.
Women speak out
Lilly Grace Nachan, Chairperson of the Kotido Women’s Farmers Forum, argues that the requirement for land titles effectively excludes most women from accessing crucial financial services, despite their enthusiasm for commercial agriculture and business development.
“We are ready to expand our farms and enterprises,” Nachan said. “But without financial backing, we remain stuck in small-scale operations.”
Special Presidential Assistant Angolere Caro reaffirmed the government’s commitment to addressing this gap, emphasising the need for flexible and inclusive banking policies.
“Financial institutions must adapt their policies to suit women’s realities,” she noted. “We need alternatives like cooperative-backed loans and government-supported financial programmes that reflect the lived experiences of Karamoja’s women.”
Historical roots
Karamoja’s communal land system has long been controlled by male elders and clan heads, leaving women reliant on family arrangements for access to farmland or business space. Even after Parliament degazetted some conservation land in 2002 to allow for broader use, women still struggle to obtain formal ownership, effectively disqualifying them from traditional loans.
Women craft their own financial solutions
Despite these structural barriers, women-led farming cooperatives and business groups in Kotido and other districts across the region have pioneered alternative financial models to support one another: Community savings groups, where women pool resources and offer local loans without needing land titles; cooperative-backed financing, enabling women to access group-based loans through shared assets; and policy advocacy, encouraging financial institutions to accept livestock, farm tools, or business inventory as acceptable collateral
Teko Nuria, Vice Chairperson of the Kotido district, stressed that revising banking policy is vital to economic empowerment.
“Women are the backbone of agriculture and enterprise in Karamoja, yet outdated land ownership customs continue to exclude them from financial resources,” she said. “If banks and government agencies fail to respond, we will see hardworking women remain trapped in poverty.”
Ajok, a 38-year-old farmer and retailer in Kotido district, was recently denied a GROW loan to expand her maize farm and shop. Despite a thriving agricultural business, she was rejected for not having a land title for the funds provided by the World Bank through the Ministry of Gender Labour and Social Development.
“I’ve worked this land for years, but it belongs to my husband’s family — I can’t use it as collateral,” she explained. “Without a loan, I can’t invest in better seeds, irrigation equipment, or more stock for my business.”
Her story is echoed across the region, where many enterprising women remain restricted to subsistence farming due to rigid loan conditions.
Government response and promising steps
In response to mounting concerns, Dr Emmanuel Aliba Kiiza, Chairperson of the Microfinance Support Centre, has instructed financial officials to explore mechanisms enabling women in Karamoja to access GROW project loans without needing land titles.
Additionally, the Ugandan Cabinet has approved reduced interest rates for women borrowers in Karamoja, Busoga, and Bukedi, as part of an affirmative action plan to boost female entrepreneurship.
Financial inclusion
According to the FinScope Uganda 2018 report, 57 percent of Ugandan women rely on informal lenders, and only 24 percent have access to formal financial services. The gender gap in financial inclusion remains stark, especially in rural regions like Karamoja, where customary land systems further compound the issue.
What needs to change
Experts propose several strategies to improve financial access for women in rural areas: Flexible collateral models, accepting farm tools, livestock, or business inventory in place of land titles; government-guaranteed credit schemes, allowing banks to support women-led ventures with reduced risk; and scaling women-led financial cooperatives, to expand access to non-traditional loan options
A call to action
While there has been encouraging progress, women entrepreneurs in Karamoja continue to call for urgent, meaningful policy reform to enable true financial inclusion. Their message is clear: for Uganda’s development to be truly inclusive, financial systems must evolve to match the cultural realities of regions like Karamoja.
With cooperative models, government intervention, and determined advocacy, Karamoja’s women are forging a path towards economic empowerment — despite the cultural barriers still standing in their way.
https://thecooperator.news/only-21-percent-of-grow-project-funds-expended-says-new-report/
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