Government Opens Hoima Centre to Support Migrant Workers

What the report says

Nile Post reports that the government has opened a Bunyoro regional migrant workers support centre in Hoima City to assist Ugandans involved in foreign employment, including those returning after facing difficulties abroad. The satellite office is located at the Hoima Service Uganda Centre in Kasingo and is expected to offer information, collect data on migrant workers, and connect returnees with rehabilitation, guidance and complaint-resolution support.

According to the report, Ministry of Local Government Permanent Secretary Ben Kumumanya, in remarks delivered by Principal Inspector Ruth Gyayo during a stakeholders’ engagement at Hoima District headquarters, said the centre would help address problems faced by migrant workers returning from foreign countries. He said particular attention would be given to women who have worked in Arab countries and may need rehabilitation services or channels to raise grievances.

The office will be supported by the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development and partners including the International Organization for Migration. Denis Mupeyi, a senior labour officer at the ministry, said more than 350,000 young Ugandan women are working as migrant labourers in Arab countries, with many from the Bunyoro region. He also said Ugandans are employed in countries such as Russia, Cambodia, Myanmar, Ukraine, Iran and Iraq, where tracing and assisting them can become difficult, especially in conflict-affected settings.

Hoima Assistant Resident City Commissioner Grace Nsasire urged coordination among stakeholders and warned about illegal recruitment networks that lure young women with promises of well-paying jobs. The new centre matters because Uganda’s labour migration sector has expanded while concerns persist over trafficking, abuse, documentation gaps and support for distressed returnees.