Residents of Tapac and Katikekile sub-counties in Moroto district, northern Uganda have offered at least 15.5 acres of land to Tororo Cement Factory for the construction of a primary school and a health facility.
Tororo Cement through Granite General Contractors Ltd (GGCL) currently has business projects in Karamoja, specifically in Tapac sub-county. Key to the mandate of GGCL is the provision of corporate social responsibility (CSR) to the communities where its projects are being implemented.
The community donated the land in two locations within Kachunameri homestead in Naut village, which comprises 5.9 acres located to the north of Omaniman River and the second area of land comprising 9.6 acres.
The LCI chairperson of Naut village, Lomorumoi Lobeyo said that the community has agreed to provide the land for the construction of a school as it would be an important asset to the community of Naut which has been struggling to access education services from far-flung places.
He observed that most of their children find it hard to complete the primary education cycle because of the long distances they have to walk daily to access the school. Lobeyo added that the community is also willing to provide more land for the construction of the health facility.
He explained that access to health services remains another big problem his community is grappling with and the government has not paid attention to it. The representative of GGCL, Noah Ewatu said that all activities will be carried out with full community engagement including road clearing, construction works, and casual labour at the quarry site.
Ewatu said GGCL will also construct animal drinking points at Kachunameri borehole, motorise Namorupus borehole, redirect the road to pass through Kachunameri trading centre among other CSR activities.
Joseph Pulkol, LC III chairperson of Tapac sub county lauded GGCL for CSR approach that has put community development at the heart of all its business operations in the area.
Pulkol said that such an exemplary approach should be adopted by all other development partners including Non-Government Organizations working in the sub-county and Moroto district at large.
He challenged the communities of Tapac to embrace government development programs and become the champions of their growth. Pulkol vowed to work closely with GGCL to ensure that all the commitments made are achieved