By SAMMY LUTTA

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Kenya and Uganda have launched a project to reaffirm border markers vandalised for extraction of by-products believed to be valuable for resale.

The markers, some of which had never been repaired since independence, were destroyed as bandits targeted them over unverified claims that the material used to erect them was made from valuable minerals.

Officials from Kenya International Boundaries Office (Kibo) and Uganda's Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development announced this week they will be conducting a 15-day boundary reaffirmation exercise. They will mostly rely on old documents which they say have clear coordinates, pillars and natural features to be followed.

Kibo Director Julius Rotich said the first reaffirmation exercise will focus on the 60-kilometer stretch at Lomokori in Turkana, which is the most vandalised. It is part of the 933-kilometre boundary between Kenya and Uganda.

Read: Kenya, Uganda commit to ease border delays

The 60-kilometre stretch will see pillars erected at intervals of 200 metres and will also involve local participation of pastoralist communities who have often fought over pasture in the unmarked areas.

“The vandalised boundary was constructed by colonialists and the local people never participated. We are using local artisans from both countries to construct the pillars using materials that they will also supply. The pillars will be constructed using water, cement, iron bars, and sand to eliminate any suspicion that there are valuable minerals used,” he explained on Tuesday.

Moroto Deputy Resident District Commissioner Mr Justin Tuko, who led the Ugandan delegation, said that tension along the border has been rising whenever herders and elders differed on where the boundary was, resulting in cattle raids and killing of innocent civilians.

“It will be historical that the two countries are officially reopening the boundary. This will ensure proper planning and budgeting for services by respective governments boosting access to basic services by border residents," Mr Tuko said. He represents the administrative region that borders Kenya’s West Pokot County.

In June last year, more than 25,000 herders from Turkana North, Turkana West, Turkana Central, and Loima Sub-Counties fled back into Kenya following mounting tension at the border. They had been relying on the Ugandan side for pasture and water.

The pillars may not immediately end these kinds of tensions especially since the border is often porous. But officials argued markers could guide herders to know where their land reaches, enhancing future communal interactions that are based on cooperation rather than rustling.

Turkana Governor Jeremiah Lomorukai said that boundary disputes have been catalysing conflicts among warring pastoral communities.

Read: Kenya, Uganda quarrel over detained herdsmen

“Reaffirming the boundary is a big step towards achieving sustainable peace along the border of Kenya and Uganda as it will help in ensuring coordinated sharing of border pasture and water among Turkana, Matheniko and Tepes communities residing at the border, especially during drought," Lomorukai said.

On the border between Uganda and Kenya, officials have often struggled to keep the peace as drought and erratic weather fuels conflicts over water and pasture. Last year, the Uganda People Defence Forces (UPDF) soldiers and police conducted a Cordon-and-Search operation that led to the arrest of 32 Kenyan pastoralists on April 8.

They were later sentenced to 20 years in prison by the 3rd Division Military Court Martial based in Moroto District in Uganda after being found guilty of illegal possession of firearms and ammunition.

Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni had also banned Kenya pastoralists from crossing over for pasture. His decision arose from the murder of three Ugandan geologists and two UPDF officers who were mapping minerals in the Karamoja sub-region in March 2022.

He demanded that the herder community from Kenya hands over those suspected to have committed the crimes for trial.

Read: Museveni demands Kenya extradites herders for murder trial

The re-affirmation, officials say, is following the latest policy changes by the regional bloc, Intergovernmental Authority on Development (Igad). Igad includes Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, Somalia, South Sudan, Eritrea and Sudan.

The bloc recently launched the Strategy for Sustainable and Resilient Livestock Development that suggests that border communities in Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, South Sudan and Somalia should adopt sustainable pastoralism and livestock production, and boost cross-border trade.

Dr Adan Biko, the head of the Igad Centre for Pastoral Areas and Livestock Development, said that the Transhumance protocol in the regional bloc is one of the strategies to manage migration in search of pasture and water is paramount to the survival of pastoral communities.