New Plan Seeks To End Uganda’s Cycle Of Sectarian Politics
Land, elections, youth unemployment and regional inequality identified as key fault lines in proposed Consociational Democracy Agreement
By Okanokodi EMar P’Tekamoi
Uganda could adopt a new power-sharing framework aimed at tackling the country’s longstanding ethnic, religious, regional and economic divisions under a far-reaching proposal for a Consociational Democracy Agreement (CDA).
The proposal, contained in a new working paper by Professor Ogenga Otunnu and General Caleb Akandwanaho-Salim Saleh, argues that Uganda’s recurring political conflicts cannot be permanently resolved through elite political bargains alone.
Instead, it calls for a structured system of cooperation that would bring political parties, government, religious and cultural institutions, civil society, women, youth and communities into a single framework for addressing grievances and preventing conflict.
The paper traces Uganda’s sectarian divisions to the 19th century, arguing that they were not inevitable “ancient hatreds” but were progressively created, politicised and exploited.
It identifies 1844, when Islam arrived at the court of Kabaka Suna, as an early turning point, followed by the arrival of Protestant and Catholic missionaries in the 1870s. Religious competition subsequently became intertwined with political power.
British colonial rule, the report says, deepened those divisions by fixing ethnic identities, reshaping territorial boundaries, favouring particular religious groups and creating regional economic inequalities.
The 1900 Uganda Agreement is singled out as one of the most consequential arrangements, particularly because of its implications for Buganda’s political status and land ownership. The colonial policy of recruiting soldiers largely from northern Uganda while concentrating agricultural and administrative development in the south also helped establish the regional inequalities that remain politically significant today.
A history of failed political bargains
Uganda’s post-independence history, according to the paper, demonstrates the limitations of elite power-sharing.
From the UPC-Kabaka Yekka alliance under Milton Obote to the post-Amin Uganda National Liberation Front coalition and the broad-based governments established under the National Resistance Movement, successive governments have sought to bring competing political and regional interests together.
Such arrangements sometimes delivered stability, but the paper argues that they repeatedly failed because ordinary citizens were left outside the negotiations.
The result, it says, has been a cycle in which political leaders reach agreements while underlying grievances over land, identity, political representation, resources and economic opportunity remain unresolved.
The authors warn that agreements made behind closed doors can ultimately deepen public mistrust and turn political elites into permanent custodians of the very divisions they claim to be managing.
NRM achievements acknowledged
The report takes a generally positive assessment of the NRM government’s record since 1986, crediting it with helping restore security, expanding education, restoring cultural institutions, negotiating settlements with armed groups and presiding over decades of economic recovery.
The restoration of Buganda and other cultural institutions, the introduction of Universal Primary and Secondary Education and the creation of Local Council structures are among the achievements highlighted.
But the paper says progress has not eliminated structural sources of discontent.
Electoral credibility, unresolved land disputes, youth unemployment, unequal access to quality education, poor public services and economic exclusion remain major concerns.
The authors argue that these issues cannot be addressed simply through political appointments or alliances.
Three chambers proposed
At the heart of the proposed CDA is a National Consociational Council comprising three chambers.
The first would bring together government and political parties to negotiate political agreements.
The second would provide a grassroots and multi-stakeholder platform involving civil society, religious organisations, women, youth and other groups to ensure that national agreements reflect community concerns.
The third would be a technical secretariat responsible for turning agreements into actual government programmes, budgets and measurable targets.
The proposal also calls for agreements to be written, published and made available in local languages, with independent monitoring and regular public reporting.
From Kampala to the village
Perhaps the most significant departure from previous political arrangements is the proposal’s emphasis on grassroots participation.
The authors argue that a national agreement will have little meaning if it does not translate into improvements in communities.
They propose a six-stage process: identify grievances, conduct joint elite and grassroots dialogue, publish agreements, implement concrete redress measures, monitor progress and return unresolved issues to national dialogue.
Land mediation is presented as one practical example. The report points to the Kapeeka Land Bank Committee as a model for resolving disputes between landlords and occupants through structured mediation and documented agreements.
A warning against permanent division
The authors also caution that consociational democracy could itself become dangerous if it simply converts ethnic and religious identities into permanent political quotas.
The objective, they say, should ultimately be to reduce the political importance of sectarian identities, not institutionalise them.
The proposal therefore calls for sunset and review clauses, anti-clientelism measures and independent monitoring to prevent the system from becoming another mechanism for elite patronage.
The report further argues that consensus-based governance is not alien to Africa. It points to precolonial Ugandan societies where negotiation, consensus, clan representation and collective decision-making played important roles in maintaining political legitimacy.
For Uganda, the authors present the CDA not as a replacement for existing institutions but as a framework for making cooperation more inclusive, transparent and accountable.
Their central warning is stark: Uganda cannot continue managing deep-seated grievances through elite agreements that exclude the communities affected by them.
The proposed alternative is a political settlement that reaches beyond the cabinet and Parliament to the district, parish, village and household.
Whether the proposal gains political traction could determine whether Uganda’s next chapter continues the cycle of managing sectarian divisions—or begins the more difficult task of dismantling them. (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
