Manifesto of Hon. Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng Ocero

NRM Flag Bearer – Woman Member of Parliament, Lira City (2026–2031)

Executive Summary

Over four years, Hon. Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng Ocero has demonstrated effective, data-driven leadership for Lira City:

• 37 km of city roads rehabilitated

• 45 boreholes drilled + 12 rehabilitated (clean water access for 200,000 residents)

• 880 community groups supported with UGX 440 million in grants

• 1,350 households supported with hybrid seeds

• 164 motorcycles provided to community health workers

• 27 secondary schools supported with new curriculum textbooks

• 25+ churches built or renovated, over UGX 60 million invested

• UGX 25 billion mobilized through global partnerships (World Bank, JICA, Plan International)

• 135 motorcycles financed under the Boda Boda loan scheme (UGX 704.7M)

• 10,000 women reached through health camps, and 3,500 patients received free eye surgery

Preamble: What I Bring to Lira City

Over the past four years and five months, I have demonstrated that visionary leadership, backed by integrity and competence, delivers tangible results. I bring to Lira City a blend of professional experience, national influence, and global partnerships unmatched in our region.

1. A Proven Record of Delivery – Managed over UGX 200 billion in health investments, mobilized 40 projects, 37 km of roads, and reached 200,000 residents with safe water.

2. Strategic Advantage – As Minister of Health and Cabinet member, I directly lobby for Lira’s development priorities at the national level.

3. Global Reach – Through the MoH-led partnerships with World Bank, JICA, Plan International, and other private organizations such as Airtel Uganda, bringing over UGX 25 billion in projects to Northern Uganda.

4. Integrity and Empathy – My leadership combines honesty, technical skill, and a heart for service. I ensure that Lira City’s voice is always represented where decisions are made.

1. Who Am I

I am a God-fearing, self-motivated, and hardworking Ugandan politician with a lifelong commitment to service. I rose through the ranks of the health sector through discipline, integrity, and excellence—qualities that have anchored my political service when you wisely voted for me as the first Woman MP for Lira City in 2021.

With over 30 years of experience in leadership—including as Director of Lira Regional Referral Hospital, Director General of Health Services, and Minister of Health—I bring unmatched technical, managerial, and policy experience to guide the next phase of Lira City’s transformation.

2. Why I Am Standing Again

In line with the NRM Manifesto and Lira City, I seek a renewed mandate for the period 2026 – 2031, to safeguard and build upon the gains we have made as Lira City and Uganda advance toward higher middle-income status.

In the next term, I will:

· Consolidate progress in wealth creation, health, education, agriculture, infrastructure, water and environment, and social empowerment programs for women, youth, and the elderly.

· Catalyze partnerships among government, private sector, and development agencies to transform Lira City into a modern industrial and health hub.

· Empower communities, especially women, youth, and the urban poor, through inclusive livelihood and skills programs.

· Uphold the values of integrity, unity, faith, and hard work that define the Lango people.

· Deepen collaboration and trust between citizens and government to improve service delivery and accountability.

· Strengthen external linkages with national and international partners for investment and development.

· Promote community participation in wealth creation and social transformation initiatives.

3. Vision for Lira City

A modern, healthy, and prosperous industrial city built on unity, hard work, innovation, and faith.

Key Pillars:

1. Wealth Creation through government programs and catalytic funding.

2. Education and Youth Empowerment

3. Women and Community Empowerment

4. Industrialization, Trade, and Employment

5. Urban Infrastructure, Water, and Sanitation

6. Good Governance, and Preservation of Faith and Culture.

4. Strategies and Approaches that Delivered Results (2021–2025)

Preamble

Between 2021 and 2025, our success in Lira City was not accidental — it was the outcome of deliberate strategy, evidence-based planning, and collective effort. Progress came from building strong alliances across government ministries, Parliament, the private sector, faith institutions, the cultural leadership of the Lango people, and local communities themselves.

Our approach was rooted in a simple conviction: that lasting transformation must be people-centred, inclusive, and accountable. Every initiative — whether in social wealth creation, health, education, agriculture, or infrastructure — was designed through consultation, collaboration, coordination, oversight of government programmes and implementation through partnerships.

Key Approaches Used

1. Lobbying and High-Level Advocacy:

Strategic engagement by this MP with Government and Parliament ensured that Lira City’s priorities — from road works to hospital upgrades — were not only reflected in national budgets and sectoral plans but implemented. This consistent lobbying secured projects such as the oxygen plant, industrial park land, and new health centres.

2. Public–Private and Development Partnerships:

By mobilizing collaboration with development partners, for example, US Government agencies, World Bank, JICA, Plan International; and private organisations including Airtel Uganda, the Indian and Pakistani associations, and other local investors attracted resources for health infrastructure, education support, and industrialization. This engagement with private sector became a key alternative source of local growth and development.

3. Community Participation and Ownership:

Development was made inclusive by involving local leaders, youth, women’s groups, and community associations at every stage — from identifying priorities through a formal needs assessment exercise, to monitoring implementation of activities. This approach fostered ownership, participation, accountability and civic pride, exemplified in initiatives like the water and sanitation initiatives and specialised community health camps.

4. Collaboration with Faith-Based and Cultural Institutions:

Faith organizations and the Lango Cultural Foundation were central to mobilizing communities, promoting social values, and strengthening moral leadership. Their participation helped sustain peace, unity, and a shared vision for progress.

5. Evidence-Driven and Results-Oriented Planning:

Data from hospitals, schools, and community structures guided investment decisions. By identifying the highest-impact areas — such as maternal health, MDR-TB control, and youth empowerment — we ensured that resources produced measurable results.

6. Empowerment Through Innovative Financing

Women, youth, and marginalized groups were supported to access capital, skills, and entrepreneurship opportunities through grants, SACCOs, and cooperatives — promoting self-reliance and inclusive growth.

In fulfillment of her 2021 campaign pledge to uplift community enterprise, Hon. Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng Ocero went beyond mobilizing government and partner support by personally dedicating all of her five-year constituency allowance savings to provide seed grants to 880 Micro and Small-Scale Enterprise (MSA) groups, each receiving UGX 500,000. This personal initiative reflects her conviction that true leadership is not only about advocacy, but also about directly investing in the people she serves.

7. Multi-Sector Coordination:

Effective coordination between ministries, city authorities, and local councils avoided duplication, optimized limited resources, and aligned projects with the broader NRM development agenda.

5. Lessons Learned and the Way Forward

From these approaches, we learned that partnership and persistent engagement with resource holders yield lasting impact. Projects succeed: when the leadership at different levels and the community are involved from the start; when leaders listen; and when government and citizens move in the same direction. Hence, there is a need for Lira City’s leadership and population to be attuned to the NRM Government’s development agenda as spelt out in the NRM manifesto.

As we enter the 2026–2031 term, our focus will be on scaling up what worked:

· Strengthen the NRM government structures to support lobbying and monitoring of government programs.

· Expanding structured engagement with the private sector and investors to unlock jobs and industrial growth.

· Institutionalizing collaboration with the Lango Cultural Foundation and inter-faith councils as pillars for social transformation.

· Deepening community participation in health, sanitation, and local economic initiatives.

· Strengthening evidence use in planning, monitoring, and accountability across all city programs.

Through unity, hard work, and faith — values that define the Lango people — we will consolidate our achievements and propel Lira City toward its full potential as Northern Uganda’s modern industrial and health hub.

6. Priority Intervention Areas for Lira Cty (2026–2031)

(Aligned with the NRM Manifesto 2026–2031 and National Development Plan IV)

1. Health and Social Services

Achievements 2021–2025: Established the oxygen plant, ambulance dispatch centre and Satellite Laboratory at Lira Regional Referral Hospital (LRRH), upgraded Ober and Ongica Health Centre IIIs to IVs, improved maternity and emergency care, and secured construction of the Regional Blood Bank and Aler Incinerator.

Gaps: Rising urban health needs, high out-of-pocket health expenditure, limited emergency services, and shortage of specialized staff.

Interventions 2026–2031:

· Elevate Lira Regional Referral Hospital to a Regional Specialized Centre with enhanced capacity for Cancer and Heart Treatment among others.

· Complete and operationalize the Regional Blood Bank at Lira University

· Enhance the Lira City Health Authority capacity to coordinate urban health planning, sanitation, and primary care.

· Explore community-based health schemes, work with government to innovate mechanisms of integration with Parish Savings and Credit groups under the PDM.

· Work with institutions of medical training to train additional specialized staff and strengthen the role of community health workers (CHEWs and VHTs) in improving health care access.

· Intensify preventive health campaigns on lifestyle diseases, road safety, and environmental health.

2. Agriculture and Agro-Industrialization

Achievements 2021–2025: Distributed hybrid maize seeds to 1,350 households, introduced hand tractors to cooperatives, and played a key role in negotiations to establish the 700-acre Aler Industrial Park.

Gaps: Low productivity per acre, limited access to agricultural credit, and weak farmer–market linkages.

Interventions 2026–2031 (Aligned to PDM Pillars):

· Promote household-level commercialization through the 4-Acre Model — balancing food security and cash crops (acre for food crops, acre for cash crops, acre for fruits, and acre for fodder or poultry/piggery).

· Strengthen agricultural extension services to train farmers in climate-smart and high-yield practices.

· Support agricultural cooperatives to act as commodity aggregation and marketing hubs, linking farmers to processors and buyers.

· Expand access to agro financing through the PDM SACCOs and microcredit schemes.

· Attract private investment in agro-processing (cassava, maize, oilseed, dairy, and poultry) within the Aler Industrial Park.

· Facilitate the establishment of produce storage, grading, and value addition facilities to reduce post-harvest losses.

3. Education and Human Capital Development

Achievements 2021–2025: Supported the upgrade of Alwak and Arumgai Primary Schools, supported Nancy School for the Deaf with solar and water systems, and delivered new curriculum textbooks to 27 secondary schools.

Gaps: Inadequate classrooms, teacher housing, and limited access to ICT learning tools.

Interventions 2026–2031:

· Advocate for the one secondary school per division and one primary school per parish plan for Lira City.

· Lobby for more digital learning and ICT infrastructure opportunities, including smart classrooms and community computer labs.

· Strengthen teacher capacity through encouraging continuous professional development and welfare schemes.

· Support girl-child education through reusable pad initiatives and menstrual health programs.

· Enhance technical and vocational training through partnerships with Lira University and private institutions.

4. Urban Planning and Development

Achievements 2021–2025: 37 km of roads rehabilitated, 40 boreholes drilled, 12 repaired, two garbage trucks and an incinerator mobilized, and market water restored after a decade.

Gaps: Inadequate housing, poor drainage, unplanned settlements, and growing solid waste burden.

Interventions 2026–2031:

· Support the implementation of the comprehensive Lira City Physical Development Plan for organized growth.

· Promote low-cost rental housing through partnerships with the Ministry of Housing and private developers.

· Strengthen urban drainage and storm-water management to reduce flooding.

· Introduce waste-to-energy and recycling initiatives to promote environmental sustainability.

· Lobby for the expansion street lighting, CCTV surveillance, and pedestrian-friendly roads to improve safety.

· Promote road safety education and enforcement in collaboration with police, schools, and transport unions.

5. Commerce, Industry, and Tourism

Achievements 2021–2025: Secured 700 acres for Aler Industrial Park, attracted a granite and marble factory, and supported trader cooperatives.

Gaps: Limited access to affordable credit, weak trade infrastructure, and low tourism development.

Interventions 2026–2031:

· Fast-track development of the Aler Industrial Park into a regional manufacturing and logistics hub.

· Facilitate credit access for small traders and cooperatives through SACCOs and the Parish Model.

· Support market infrastructure upgrades, including modern stalls, storage, and hygiene facilities.

· Promote tourism development through faith and heritage routes, and events like the Akii Bua Memorial Sports Festival.

· Encourage e-commerce adoption and digital payments among traders.

6. Women and Youth Empowerment

Achievements 2021–2025: Distributed UGX 440 million to 880 women and youth groups, launched a boda-boda loan scheme for 135 riders, and distributed 1,000 gomesis on Women’s Day.

Gaps: Limited enterprise growth, lack of mentorship, and gaps in financial literacy.

Interventions 2026–2031:

· Expand access to start-up financing through the Women and Youth Funds under the PDM.

· Establish a City Innovation and Skills Centre for youth skilling, apprenticeship, and mentorship.

· Promote women-led cooperatives and enterprises in agro-processing, tailoring, catering, and crafts.

· Strengthen financial literacy and business mentorship programs through partnerships with banks and NGOs.

· Continue promoting gender equality and social inclusion through cultural and faith-based networks.

7. Marginalized and Special Interest Groups

Achievements 2021–2025: Supported PWDs with assistive devices worth USD 98,000, provided grants to widows and orphans, and empowered slum communities.

Gaps: Persistent urban poverty, vulnerability among street children, and inadequate rehabilitation services.

Interventions 2026–2031:

· Strengthen city-wide inclusion policies for PWDs, orphans, widows, and the elderly.

· Lobby for the setting rehabilitation and skills centres for persons with disabilities and survivors of abuse.

· Expand access to social protection programs through parish-level registration and follow-up.

· Integrate vulnerable groups into livelihood and savings schemes under the Parish Development Model.

· Support faith-based and cultural organizations to continue promoting compassion, moral guidance, and community solidarity.

Conclusion

Lira City is on a transformative path—healthier, stronger, and more prosperous than ever before.

Our journey from a regional town to a thriving urban hub is ongoing. The next five years are about deepening what we have started, completing unfinished projects, and building a self-reliant, healthy, and empowered city.

With your support, we will complete the elevation of our hospital, bring into being our aerodrome, finish Akii Bua Stadium, and ensure every child and family in Lira City lives with dignity, opportunity, and pride.

“A Young City Needs a Leader With — Tried, Tested, and Proven skills.”

Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng Ocero

Woman Member of Parliament, Lira City

My Promise

I have walked this journey with the people of Lira City for over 25 years—first as a doctor, later as a policymaker, and now as your servant in Parliament. I thank the President of Uganda and Chairman of the NRM that opened the door for this opportunity. I also thank the voters of Lira City for this opportunity. Together, we have laid a strong foundation by listening to your voices, by planning together, advocating, lobbying, and following up with the government, with development partners, and the private sector. The next term is about the consolidation of the drive for growth and transformation.

“When you empower people, you change generations.”

Hon. Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng Ocero

Aspiring Woman Member of Parliament, Lira City 2026 - 2031

Minister of Health, Republic of Uganda