The outgoing Minister for Karamoja Affairs, John Byabagambi, yesterday said government is in advanced stages of constructing a 10,000 square hectares lake for Karamoja Sub-region to curb insecurity and promote agricultural production, Daily Monitor newspaper has reported.

While handing over the office to his successor, Dr. Mary Goretti Kitutu, Byabagambi said the two outstanding immediate assignments awaiting her are the construction of a man-made lake at Lopei between the districts of Moroto and Kotido, and fast-tracking the gazetting of Mt Moroto as a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) heritage site.

He added that the lake, whose feasibility studies and designs have already been carried out, is expected to cost less than $100m (Shs354.1b) and will serve the districts of Napak, Moroto, Kotido, and Abim, to reduce the distances that the pastoralists have been travelling to access water in the five valley dams and 116 valley tanks that were constructed in the area.

The lake would be the first of its kind in Uganda and would join other man-made lakes on the continent including Lake Volta in Ghana and Lake Kariba in Zimbabwe (in the photo), which is also the largest man-made lake in the world.

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