Mbale, Uganda | Survivors of the 2019 Bududa landslide have returned to the Mbale High Court, reigniting a long-stalled legal battle against the Ugandan government. The case, dormant for nearly five years, resumes at a time when the eastern region braces for another intense rainy season and renewed fears of tragedy.
The 48 claimants, represented by Greenwatch and Kakuru & Co. Advocates, accuse the government of failing to implement effective disaster management systems, violating constitutional duties to protect citizens. They are seeking compensation for the victims’ families and the establishment of emergency response structures in high-risk zones.
The lawsuit was first filed in 2020, following a catastrophic landslide in Bududa District that claimed dozens of lives and displaced hundreds. After years of delays due to procedural technicalities, the case now returns to court just a year after a similar landslide in Bulambuli killed at least 15 people and left over 100 missing.
Greenwatch Director Samantha Atukunda Kakuru Mwesigwa called the hearing a milestone moment. “Nearly five years since this case was filed, these communities have remained steadfast in their pursuit of justice,” she said. “Without proper funding and adaptation measures, eastern Uganda’s mountain communities will continue to live in fear.”
Eastern Uganda remains one of the country’s most disaster-prone regions, where increasingly severe rains worsened by climate change continue to trigger deadly landslides. Although the government launched a resettlement program in 2010 to relocate families from high-risk slopes, progress has been slow, and many remain in danger.
The Bududa tragedy is part of a growing pattern across Africa, where extreme weather events have intensified. In 2024, floods and landslides affected nearly one million people across Kenya, Burundi, Tanzania, and Somalia, while similar disasters in Sudan killed hundreds.
As the Mbale High Court reopens the case, the survivors’ push for justice could set a powerful precedent for climate accountability in Uganda and beyond. Their plea is clear: that the government acts before more lives are lost.