Energy for social transformation : a study of the West Nile region of Uganda

Abstract

This Paper presents the results of technical, financial, environmental and management feasibility studies into the provision of reliable, sustainable and environmentally-friendly supply of electricity to the north-west corner of Uganda, called the West Nile Region – a region that is highly populated by comparison with the average population densities of the country and whose location is of both strategic and economic importance in that it serves as a gateway to the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Central African Republic in the west and to the south of Sudan in the north. The study examines various possible options for supply of electricity to the region and concludes that the optimal mode is through micro/mini-hydro power plants to be built on the 19 potential sites along nine principal rivers that drain the five districts comprising the region. It presents the current situation of supply of electricity in the region. This is followed with a detailed study for the implementation of the site at Olewa – the site nearest and with sufficient capacity to supply the current largest load centre in the area, which are the Arua Municipality and its environs. Due to the close similarities amongst those sites, it is argued that the data and findings pertaining to the Olewa one can easily be extended to the others, which thus makes this study beneficial and of direct relevance for the whole region. The paper then proceeds to discuss some of the foreseeable transformations that are likely to emanate from availability of adequate and reliable electricity supply in the region and ends with concluding remarks and recommendations.