KARAMOJA CULTURAL EVENT-NAKAPIRIPIRIT CHAPTER 2025
Located in the northeastern part of Uganda, the Karamoja sub-region is endowed with a rich, indigenous, and diverse cultural heritage. The unique and preserved traditions, customs, music, dance, dressing, and pastoralist lifestyle of the Karamojong and related communities have long contributed to Uganda’s cultural mosaic. However, modernization, social transitions, and historical marginalization have threatened the preservation and promotion of this heritage.
To keep these traditions intact, the Karamoja Cultural Event was established as an annual platform to celebrate, showcase, and preserve the cultural values of the Karamojong people. The event also aims to foster peace, unity, and socio-economic development within and beyond the region. The KCE celebration brings together all communities in the Ateker cluster in Africa with a common goal to rebuild, celebrate, and promote positive Karimojong cultural aspects geared at enhancing inclusivity, sustainable development, and achieving peace within the region and the rest of the Ateker Cluster. The Event participants are drawn from all over the sub-region, Teso, Lango of Uganda, Toposa of South Sudan, Nyangatom of Ethiopia, and the Turkana of Kenya, all related ethnic groups neighbouring one another.
This year’s event is being hosted in Nakapiripirit District from 8th -13th September 2025, with a theme of “Strengthening cultural cohesion in Diversity for socio-economic transformation’’, It comes at a critical time when communities are recovering from the impacts of climate change, youth unemployment, and cultural erosion. The event will bring together communities, governments, cultural leaders, civil societies, private sector actors, and development partners to reaffirm the value of Karamoja’s cultural identity in shaping a peaceful and prosperous future. The Karamoja Cultural Event 2025 is a timely and strategic opportunity to amplify the region’s cultural voice, build unity, and harness cultural heritage as a driver of sustainable development. Nakapiripirit District, as the host, offers a vibrant and scenic location that reflects the strength and resilience of the Karamojong people.
As a regional Civil Society Network, with support from our key donors (KOICA and UNDP) under the project BRICK, MercyCorps under the project GIRL-H, and GIZ-ZFD (Civil Peace Service) under the project TraLaMs, Riamiriam Civil Society Network- Karamoja is excited to be taking part in the event and use it as a tool to promote peaceful co-existence, preserve the Karamojong traditions, cultural heritage, practices, and build resilient communities.
Under the Building Resilience in Conflict-Affected and Fragile Communities of Karamoja (BRICK) project, objective 1.1 and activity 1.1.2provide support for annual cultural and peacebuilding events as a means to promote peaceful coexistence. This is in line with the BRICK project’s overall goal of contributing to the socio-economic empowerment of vulnerable households and promoting the peaceful coexistence of communities through resilient and gender responsive livelihoods in the three districts of Kaabong, Kotido, and Moroto, Karamoja sub-region. While the BRICK project seeks to harness opportunities that build resilience, the cultural event is an opportunity to increase visibility of the BRICK project and to participate in major aspects of realising the event objectives. The event offers us an opportunity to promote traditional events in Karamoja that enhance Peaceful Co-existence, to participate in dialogues (women, elders, and youths) to profile key challenges and opportunities in strengthening peaceful co-existence and tourism for socio-economic transformation of the Karamoja sub-region, and to enhance the BRICK Project and partners’ Visibility in the Region. Riamiriam, under the project BRICK, is facilitating dialogues with the elders on the role of elders in promoting positive cultural values and discouraging negative, harmful practices like FGM and child marriage.
Furthermore, under the GIZ ZFD-CPS project TraLaMs, participation in KCE 2025 aims to highlight and strengthen the ongoing peacebuilding efforts, rights promotion, and conflict transformation initiatives, while also amplifying community voices, particularly those of women and youth, through engaging in dialogues. The eventoffers an opportunity to celebrate cultural heritage while reinforcing peace, unity, social cohesion, and building a resilient Karamoja. The activity also aligns with the GIZ CPS program by contributing to its strategic objectives, such as violence prevention, civil conflict transformation, and peacebuilding. The program’s core principles—like long-term support, working with local partners, and promoting human rights and dialogues are reflected in this event.
Riamiriam CSN-K, in partnership with MercyCorps under the project GIRL-H, is gracing the KCE 2025 event to highlight and strengthen the ongoing peacebuilding efforts, rights promotion, and conflict transformation initiatives, while also amplifying community voices, particularly those of women and youth. The event also aims to foster collaboration with private and public actors, which directly contributes to the Establishment of Collaborative Partnerships within markets (i.e., PSAs) and Government Entities, resulting in Enhanced Resources, Influence, and Support for transitions by GIRL-H Initiatives.
It’s based on the above background and strategic objectives that Riamiriam Civil Society organizes to facilitate inter-community cross-border meeting (Karamoja Cultural Event-Nakapiripirit chapter).
