Gulu: Thousands of widows form groups to simplify getting gov’t support 

Hilda Oloum Anena, a 60-year-old widow with 7 children said they need support from the government and well-wishers.

By Okot Lil Romeo

Gulu – August 4, 2022: Over 3,600 widows in Gulu city have joined different groups with the strong hope of getting support from the government and well-wishers. Some say the move follows “some challenges” they are going through to feed their families.

Each of the 36 wards in Gulu city now has a group or groups of widows. The Gulu city woman Member of Parliament, Betty Aol Ochan has pledged to support these groups, during her tour.

Last month, over 100 group leaders in each of the 36 wards underwent training at Tak Center and were supported by Stanbic Bank and Legal Aid Redeem International on how to acquire loans from the bank and guidance on their group constitutions.

During an interview with residents in Layibi A-B where Wa-Maro Mon-Too Widows Association operates, Hilda Oloum Anena, a 60-year-old widow with 7 children said they need support from the government and well-wishers.

Anena revealed that since she lost her husband in 1991 with a 2-year-old baby, she has suffered a lot of problems. “No access to land from relatives because I was a second wife and we are badly treated.”

She, however, saw support in the family from her children. They managed to construct a two-bedroom house for her and support her in feeding the family. She appealed to the government to support them with loans or agricultural equipment like Ox-gen and Ox-plough, among other items to uplift their standards of living.

Another widow, a member of Kica Ber Women Widows Association in Acoyo ward, Okeyo Mero cells said she has seven orphans she’s taking care of.

Acayo Teddy, 54, said it is the first of its kind to form widows’ associations. “For so many years we have been abundant, without support from the government leaving us in pain, struggling to raise orphans; left in paying school fees.”

Acayo urged that the majority of street kids in Gulu city are orphans who overpower widows in taking care of them because they have been left behind and not supported.

Richard Oyoo, the Community Development Officer [CDO] Pece-Laroo division, said all the groups must have their constitution to guide in managing members who will not follow the constitution. “It is easy to punish accordingly and it will make the easy circulation of money from members.”

Oyoo also tasked all the widows not to take group ownership as individual ownership to avoid groups’ collapse.

Oryema Denis Ayella, CDO of Bardege-Layibi in an interview with TND News advised all the widows not to keep money in the house to avoid being lost, further appealing to them to start loving the government’s interventions like PDM.

Pamela Alwoch, manager of Stanbic Bank Gulu branch told this digital publication that they are going to offer total support: give loans at affordable interest. This, she said will be offered only to the organized groups to avoid misuse of money.

Alwoch appealed to all the widows who are in groups to have their national identity cards for easy access to necessary support from both well-wishers and the government.

MP Aol Betty Ocan who is behind the initiative said she is checking for the best way to support the widows who have been abandoned, denied access to land; or tortured by relatives in the community.

Aol also noted that she is checking for the root cause of street kids in Gulu city.

She also advised all widows to love God first because He [God] is the only husband left to take care of the orphans. She appealed to them to give hope of life to orphans they have and be a good example.