The meeting which took place at Nakawa House in
The meeting kicked off at
Below are the deliberations:
Ms. Frida Sengooba, from the Directorate of Information and National Guidance, pledged her support for the initiative. She reiterated the crucial role played by DIOs, admitting that without information flow so many government programs cannot take off. She was happy, she said, that the new Minister of Information Hon. Kabakumba Matsiko, is enthusiastic about supporting DIOs, to reinstate them as the link between the central government and the local governments because policies are formulated centrally and implemented and DIOs are middlemen in this regard.
Mr. Francis Okiror -District Information Officer, Pallisa, representing DIOs, presented a concept paper on the important role DIOs play in spreading information on development issues in the areas of education, poverty eradication, health, democracy and good governance. Today, he said, DIOs are not playing their role because of lack of support and recognition. First, he took members down memory lane to the days when DIOs were news gatherers for the national broadcaster – the then Uganda Television and Radio
He lamented that DIOs have been "disowned by their mother ministry", they are disregarded at the district by their superiors, are not facilitated to do their work and have been turned into praise singers of district chairmen.
He also regretted the inexistence of an information policy and communication strategy –a thing that has perpetuated the sprouting of makeshift video halls in districts that largely screen crime, war and pornographic films which have corrupted the morals of many young people in addition to fomenting idleness. Alluding to the fact that Information is still a cornerstone of development, he argued that the formation of the association of DIOs will assuage the situation by drawing a communications strategy and information program to regulate video halls as well as help in working with FM radio stations at the district to relay development messages.
With E-governance beginning to take root in the country, this will be an opportunity as well for DIOs to use their training, experience and professionalism to help brand and promote the unique beauty and potential of their districts on blogs, and by writing stories and opinion articles and having them published in the mainstream local and international newspapers. This will interest potential investors or tourists to the districts –which will lead to development and social transformation.
On his part, Caleb Mugisha, a lawyer, told members about the legal framework that will guide the association; how the association will be structured and managed, membership and its validity, advising that cohesion in the Association means strength. 
Mr. Robert Kabushenga, the CEO of The New Vision echoed the importance of DIOs in relaying government programs to the locals. He said DIOs should be the ones giving information to reporters, adding that New Vision will gladly publish their stories. He advised that the Association should be in business by September 2009.
The eventful meeting was adjourned at
It was unanimously agreed upon that the launch of the Association of District Information Offices –
Outstandingly, the formation of the Association will go a long way in improving the relationship between the central government and the local government offices, and through training and public awareness workshops, the media and the general public will be sure to get useful updates on development issues and other interesting stories and happenings countrywide.
Compiled by: Dennis D. Muhumuza and Brian Rwehabura
There is a smell of money in the air in Mbale. When you drive in, two things catch your eye. The first, if you are driving along the main Republic Street, are the number of banks elbowing each other for prime space along the thoroughfare. Stanbic, Dfcu, Standard Chartered, Post Bank, Barclays, etc are all open for business.
The second is the sheer number of people out on the streets doing business and all sorts of trade. Many shops stay open until almost 7p.m; the stalls set up along the street corners even longer.
There is a sense of opportunity and possibility in the air. At the Mount Elgon Hotel where I stayed, the bar downstairs was busy when I arrived.
The Italian investor who now runs the hotel has just opened a swimming pool, redone the bathrooms and given the old place a good old spring cleaning. The Resort Hotel, I was told, was even busier.
Even the small restaurant I stopped at for a mid-morning cup of coffee in the town was packed with locals having breakfast and reading newspapers.
Mbale, of course, was once a big town – and the cleanest. The streets have seen better days but they are still much cleaner than many in Kampala. It is still a big town – if you want to know whether a town is 'big' or just a one-street trading centre, ask if it has any suburbs; Mbale does.
Property prices are up; I was shown a three story building along the main road that recently went for Shs1.1billion and told about a plot of land three streets away from Republic Street. Asking price? Shs200 million.
What is intriguing about Mbale is that the renewed prosperity is driven by good old business acumen and new opportunities. Like Jinja, Mbale was once an industrial town, producing blankets, paper products, etc and was also a main coffee producer. Years of mismanagement and poor government policies brought the industries – and the coffee trade – to their knees until it was feeding on the crumbs of the smuggling trade.
Now Mbale has become a trade hub for Karamoja, Teso region, as well as Kenya and Southern Sudan. A lot of the maize, cassava and bananas that are exported to Juba and Kenya are grown on the fertile soils near Mt. Elgon.
Decentralisation and the carving out of new districts have also played into Mbale's hands. New districts such as Butaleja, Bukwo, Nakapiripirit, Bududa and Manafwa, Sironko, Bukedea and Budaka all surround Mbale but do not have any local bank branches.
Most of the civil servants in those districts either live in Mbale and commute to their offices, or come to the main town to withdraw (or bank) money. Naturally, they are part of the crowds that keep the shops open longer or cram the streets hunting for bargains.
Mbale might have been favoured by its location but its rising fortunes hold a lesson for districts like Jinja and Tororo that had a glorious past; unless they re-invent themselves and take advantage of current opportunities, they will remain stuck with a great future behind them.
Ironically, one of the best stories emerging out of Mbale comes from an old pivot of the local economy; the Bugisu Cooperative Union (BCU).
BCU last year elected new blood to office, headed by the brilliant Nandala Mafabi. The new team started by removing internal waste, graft and incompetence. Then they started renovating the union’s commercial properties, collecting rent and investing it in the union’s mainstay; coffee-growing and processing.
A few weeks ago, BCU announced that between September 2008 and February 2009, they had turned in a profit of Shs1.4 billion – the union's first in 20 years.
Mbale is getting its groove back. It is time for local leaders and business people in other 'dead towns' to finally wake up and smell the Arabica coffee.
Written by Daniel Kalinaki and Published in Daily Monitor, March 26, 2009
ubborn and angrily asked me to get off his boda-boda before he stormed off back to town having lost both passengers. 
mes, I got out of car to whip them off before we drove on, until, seeing how exasperated I was, the driver asked me to get used to it because "these cows are the owners of the roads!"
ld to wait for dusk or to come early the next day. I parted with Shs5,000 in exchange for my first experience in navigating the lake in a canoe. I was allowed some rowing too, and as the little canoe wavered against the waves and picked up speed, golden rings formed on the blue water. In the far distance, Amolotar district beckoned; it was beautiful! 
