The Acholi People, History, and Culture

  • Uganda is located in Eastern Africa and is bordered by the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, Rwanda and Tanzania to the south, Kenya to the east, and South Sudan to the north. Lake Victoria, the world's second-largest lake by area, lies on the southern edge of the country. The capital city, Kampala, with a population of approximately 4 million people, is situated near Lake Victoria. The country has a total population of about 50 million people. There are approximately 2.2 million Acholi in Uganda, representing about 6% of the total population.

    Our land for the Fig Tree and Vine village is located in the Acholi region in the Omoro district, near Gulu, approximately 335 km (208 miles) north of Kampala. The "Acholiland" region of northern Uganda comprises eight major districts, one of which is Gulu. Gulu is a full-service community with a population of about 150,000 people.

    The term "Acholi" technically refers to the Luo ethnic group. They migrated to Uganda around 1000 AD from what is now the South Sudan region. The Acholi are organized into at least 50 different clans, each with its own traditions, social organization, and local governance.

  • Agriculture, crafts, religion, and family are critical components of Acholi culture. The Acholi are a religious group, with census reports indicating that 72% are Catholic, 23% Anglican, 2% Pentecostal, and 1% Muslim. Their language is known as Luo, commonly referred to as Acholi. They have numerous rituals, ceremonies, and dances. They possess a rich oral literature of epics, folktales, and songs that help preserve their history and cultural values.

    Cattle, goats, sheep, chickens, and other livestock are valued both culturally and economically. They cultivate a wide variety of crops and trees, which form the basis of their diet.

    The Acholi are a relatively peaceful and forgiving society, despite the hardships they have faced over the years. Since the civil war, they have worked tirelessly to rebuild their communities, preserve their heritage, and promote peacebuilding.

  • The Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), led by Joseph Kony, has been a significant source of hardship and suffering for the Acholi people in Northern Uganda. The group's activities have led to widespread displacement, violence, and cultural disruption.

    Background of the LRA

    The LRA emerged in the late 1980s as a response to the political instability in Uganda following the rise of President Yoweri Museveni. Initially, it was influenced by the Holy Spirit Movement led by Alice Lakwena, which aimed to purify and protect the Acholi people from perceived evil spirits and government injustices. Joseph Kony, claiming to receive divine messages, transformed the movement into the LRA, focusing on overthrowing the Ugandan government and establishing a new order based on the Ten Commandments.

    Atrocities and Hardships Caused by the LRA

    • Abductions and Child Soldiers: The LRA is infamous for abducting thousands of children, forcing them into combat and using them as sex slaves. Estimates suggest that between 54,000 to 75,000 people were abducted, with a significant portion being children. This has led to a generation of Acholi children experiencing trauma, violence, and loss of childhood.

    • Violence and Mutilation: The LRA committed brutal acts of violence, including mutilations such as cutting off hands, lips, ears, and breasts. These acts were often used to terrorize communities and demonstrate the group's power. Children were often captured and forced to murder their family members for the LRA or be killed themselves. Men who resisted the army's force were often killed, resulting in broken families.

    • Displacement and Refugee Crisis: The conflict led to the displacement of nearly 1.7 million people, mostly Acholi, into Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps. Conditions in these camps were dire, lacking basic amenities such as clean water, sanitation, and healthcare. These conditions led to insecurity, emotional trauma, and high mortality rates. Thousands of Acholi refugees fled to Kampala, where they established settlements such as the Banda Acholi Quarters. This was initially a makeshift refugee camp on public land but quickly evolved into a densely populated slum, with estimates of at least 10,000 and as many as 50,000 people living on 30 acres. It is overcrowded with inadequate basic necessities and widespread poverty. Families of up to ten people live in 6’x8’ mud or tin huts, typically without running water. In recent years, the Kampala government has decided to reclaim this land with the intent to demolish the slum to make room for new upscale housing. It has begun the process of taking a census of the slums and likely will force the current population to find shelter elsewhere as it demolishes the land in 2025 or 2026. This makes the need for our village project even more pressing to help relocate the 2,000 to 3,000 Acholi that our sister organization, Kids Inspiring Kids, has mentored over the past several years.

    • Cultural and Social Impact: The prolonged conflict disrupted traditional Acholi family structures, education, and cultural practices. The war also led to increased domestic violence and changes in gender roles, as women became more empowered but also faced challenges in maintaining traditional roles.

    • Psychological Trauma: The conflict has left deep psychological scars on the Acholi people, including feelings of shame, loss of dignity, and internalized symbolic violence. Many survivors struggle with trauma and the challenge of reintegrating into their communities.

    International Response and Legal Actions

    The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Joseph Kony and other LRA leaders in 2005, charging them with crimes against humanity and war crimes. However, these legal actions have been controversial among the Acholi, with some advocating for traditional justice and amnesty to facilitate peace negotiations. Joseph Kony has been in hiding since 2005 and is almost certainly in a different African country, likely Sudan or the Central African Republic. The LRA has been essentially dissolved since 2005, with only a few hundred members likely still operating in scattered gangs in Uganda. There has been no significant fighting or unrest in the Acholiland area of northern Uganda since the early 2000s, making it currently a safe and prosperous region.

  • Despite the hardships faced from the civil war and life in the refugee camps, the Acholi people continue to have faith and hope in their future. They have tried to keep families intact, with children often living with extended families since their own parents either died in the war or from diseases such as cholera, typhoid, alcoholism, COVID-19, or HIV. Many younger Acholi have sought out education and skills development to provide them with hope for future employment. Several aid organizations and NGOs have focused their efforts on helping the well-being of these residents. Fig Tree and Vine hopes to provide hope to several of these individuals by building them a new village in their native homeland in northern Uganda. Much of northern Uganda has been rebuilt since the war atrocities, allowing the region to have updated technology and infrastructure that is often more advanced than other regions of the country.

  • Despite the terror and despair that has dominated much of their lives, the Acholi people remain remarkably resilient. Walking through the homes in the Acholi quarters, you can sense the joy and hope that still resonates in their hearts. This community, no matter how many times it has been challenged, continues to rise up and find ways to make ends meet. They hold onto the dream of returning to their homeland, where they can resume a way of life that is not only familiar but also promises a sustainable future for themselves and their families. Through Fig Tree and Vine, we aim to create a place where these Acholi can realize their dreams, leveraging their resilience and determination to improve their lives. Ultimately, our goal is to help them find peace and security, where they can figuratively rest under their own fig tree and vine, free from fear.

Learn About Uganda

  • Uganda is located in eastern Africa and bordered on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the south by Rwanda and Tanzania, the east by Kenya, and the north by South Sudan. Lake Victoria, the world’s second-largest lake by area, is on the south edge of the country. The capital city Kampala, a city of approximately 1.8 million people, is located close to Lake Victoria. The country has approximately 50 million people overall.  There are about 2.2 million Acholis in Uganda, representing about 6% of the total population.

    Our land for the Fig Tree and Vine village is in the Acholi region near Gulu, about 335 km (208 miles) north of Kampala.  The “Acholiland” region of northern Uganda is made up of 8 major districts, one of which is Gulu.  Gulu is a full-service community of about 150,000 people.  

  • Uganda is separated into 4 geographic regions: Western, Central, Eastern, and Northern. There are currently 56 known tribes in Uganda. The main developed cities in Uganda are the capital, Kampala, Gulu (150,000), Jinja, Mbarara, Mbale and Fort Portal. These cities are all located in the south, with the exception of Gulu in the north. The southern region is known for being more developed and economically stable than the northern region mainly due the lack of early colonial interest, the AIDS pandemic and the ravaging of the north by Joseph Kony’s Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA). This has changed in recent years as the northern region has made significant technology and infrastructure improvements to redevelop the areas affected by the civil war.

  • The cultures in Uganda can be very generally split into the Bantu-speaking central, western and southern regions and the northern peoples speaking more Nilotic or Sudanic languages. The south is known to be more developed because of the British colonial interest and development. The northern tribes maintain a more rural living raising livestock and crops (millet, sesame, bananas, matoke, cassava, peanuts, etc).

  • Until recently, the political tension in Uganda has been a topic of much turmoil. Since gaining their independence from Britain in 1962, they have had 3 elected presidents. Yoweri Museveni is the current president and has been in office since 1986. His tenure had to deal with the invasion of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) led by Joseph Kony during the 1990’s into the 2000’s. The LRA has been quiet since the rebellion was squelched in the 2000s by a collaboration between the Ugandan, DRC and Sudanese military.

  • Uganda’s economy is based on its very fertile soil and favorable climate for agriculture. 80% of Ugandan’s rely on agriculture for their source of income. Unfortunately, due to erratic economic management and political unrest, Uganda is still one of the world’s poorest nations. According to the United Nations Development Program’s Human Development Index, Uganda has an average rating of 0.55. The Acholi and other northern tribes come in at 0.495. This index is calculated using health, education, living conditions and income. For contrast, all of the US, Canada, Australia and most of north and western Europe are above 0.95.

  • According to the International Trade Association, the infrastructure needs in Uganda are substantial. 80% of transport is performed on the roadways with many of them in disrepair. Efforts have been ongoing to elevate the quality and maintenance of roads with slow progress. A new international airport is to open in the central region of Hoima due for completion in September of 2025 (2.5 years later than anticipated). Uganda has no domestic production of equipment to undertake large scale infrastructure projects adding another hurdle to achieving substantial improvements.