Western region, Uganda
The Donum Nakivale campus: land, roads and security
The land, roads, fence, security and shared services that every other place stands on.
Planned project
This is a project we plan to build. None of the approvals it needs has been granted yet. Each one is listed below with its status, and nothing that needs an approval starts until it is granted.
Isingiro District, next to Nakivale Refugee Settlement. The exact plot is not yet bought.
70 acres
Land
titled, in the host community, next to the settlement
20,000
Population test
people within 5 km, or land from the OPM inside the settlement
1,500
Baseline survey
refugee and host households, in the first year
$226,500
Running cost a year
30 staff, upkeep, audits and surveys
To build
$1,478,416
once
To run
$226,500
a year; Donum pays it all
Its share of the Donum Endowment
$5,662,500
running cost divided by 4%
In all
$7,140,916
works finish June 2028 (planned)
$0 of $7,140,916
Pledge to this project Read the whole plan
If a project cannot go ahead, because an approval it needs is refused or its building has not begun within five years, everyone who gave to it is offered their money back or a move to another planned project.
Why it matters
- Settlement land was never formally acquired by the government and cannot be titled (Bjorkhaug and others, 2025-09); it is also full, with new arrivals given slivers of land already occupied (Refugees International, 2026-06-30).
- One campus is cheaper and stronger than five sites: one fence, one road, one power plant, one water system, one security team.
- Being in the host community means refugees and their Ugandan neighbours use the same places, which the evidence on coexistence in Nakivale supports (Bjorkhaug and others, 2025-09) (European Commission ECHO, 2025-04-14).
Read more
No published source gives the number of people within 5 km of the settlement boundary. The census's parish figures, with GPS boundaries, test the 20,000 rule before any land is bought; if no plot passes, we ask the Office of the Prime Minister for land inside the settlement instead.
No source gives land prices around Isingiro beyond listings; a registered valuer prices the chosen plot before it is bought.
What the evidence says
Aid cuts have produced ways of coping that threaten peaceful coexistence between refugees and hosts (European Commission ECHO, 2025-04-14); host narratives in Nakivale show both tension and coexistence (Bjorkhaug and others, 2025-09). A campus open to both is built for that.
What it is
The place comes first, and it is chosen by how many people live near it: at least 20,000 people, refugees and hosts together, within 5 km. That is about the population the government plans a Health Centre III for (Human Resources for Health, 2015), and 5 km is as far as a day learner can walk. We check it against the population figures the Office of the Prime Minister and UNHCR keep by zone and village before anything is bought.
Read more
Where titled land in the host community, on the edge of the settlement, passes that test, Donum buys about 70 acres of it on a public road: about 36 for the buildings and 34 for the training farm. It surveys the land, plans the whole campus at once, and builds what every project shares: the access road, roads and footpaths inside, drains, a fence, a gate, street lights, cameras, a waste station and a small office and maintenance workshop.
The campus also pays for the studies and approvals that cover everything on it: the environmental and social impact assessment, the consultations with refugee and host community leaders, and a baseline survey of 1,500 households so that, years from now, we can say honestly what changed.
When it happens
Works finish June 2028 (planned).
- The land
- Studies and approvals
- The builder
- Foundations
- Walls and roof
- Finishes, power and water
- Equipment
- Opening
Read more: approvals and stages
Approvals
| Approval | From whom | Status | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Letter of no objection and coordination with the settlement | Office of the Prime Minister, Department of Refugees, and the settlement commandant | Not yet granted | |
| Support of the district council and its planning committee | Isingiro District Local Government | Not yet granted | |
| Agreement after consultation with refugee welfare councils and host community leaders | Refugee Welfare Councils of Nakivale; local council leaders of the host villages | Not yet granted | |
| Land title transferred into Donum Foundation's name | Ministry of Lands, Mbarara zonal office | Not yet granted | |
| Environmental and social impact certificate for the whole campus | National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) | Not yet granted | |
| Approval of the campus plan and building drawings | Isingiro District physical planning committee | Not yet granted | |
| Permission to upgrade the public access road | Isingiro District roads department | Not yet granted |
Its stages
- The land. Done means: Land in a place with at least 20,000 people within 5 km, checked against Office of the Prime Minister and UNHCR population figures; its title, or a written allocation from the Office of the Prime Minister, in Donum Foundation's name, checked by our lawyer.
- Studies and approvals. Done means: Surveys, the environmental and social impact certificate, approved drawings, and every approval this project needs, each recorded on the chance page.
- The builder. Done means: Three written quotes from builders our team has checked; one chosen and the reason written down. The chosen quote replaces this estimate on the page.
- Foundations. Done means: Foundations and floor slabs inspected and signed off by the supervising engineer.
- Walls and roof. Done means: Walls up and roof on, inspected and signed off.
- Finishes, power and water. Done means: Doors, windows, plaster, paint, wiring, plumbing, power and water working, inspected.
- Equipment. Done means: Furniture and equipment in place and checked against the list.
- Opening. Done means: The confirmation of delivery signed by the community's leaders, with photos, and the running costs in place.
What it costs, and why
Where the building money goes
- $0.36 million for 70 acres with title, stamp duty and the lawyer's checks.
- $0.34 million for the access road, internal roads, drainage and the perimeter fence; $0.25 million for the gate, lights, office, workshop and vehicles.
- $0.11 million for surveys, the environmental and social impact assessment and approvals; $0.12 million for Donum's own project manager and independent audits.
Where the running money goes
- $154,300 a year for the campus team of 30, including 12 guards in shifts; $31,200 for audits, permits and the yearly follow-up survey.
Running this place costs $226,500 a year. At 4% a year, that needs $5,662,500 invested in the Donum Endowment, which is never spent: only its returns pay the running costs, every year.
Every part
None yet. Choose All to see everything.
The land $361,397 · still needs $361,397 · Planned
-
70 acres of land with a title, next to the settlement, on a public road
$345,205 · still needs $345,205 · Planned
How we reached this figure: 70 acres at UGX 18,000,000 an acre. Isingiro farmland is listed at UGX 9 to 17 million an acre (2025 to 2026); we take more for road frontage
Can start before approvals
-
Stamp duty on the land transfer (1.5%)
$5,178 · still needs $5,178 · Planned
How we reached this figure: 1.5% of the price
Can start before approvals
-
Government search, valuation, transfer and registration fees
$822 · still needs $822 · Planned
How we reached this figure: Our estimate
Can start before approvals
-
Lawyer: checking the title and the transfer (2%)
$6,904 · still needs $6,904 · Planned
How we reached this figure: 2% of the price; usual practice
Can start before approvals
-
Surveyor: boundary opening and marker stones
$3,288 · still needs $3,288 · Planned
How we reached this figure: Our estimate
Can start before approvals
-
Studies, designs and approvals $112,329 · still needs $112,329 · Planned
-
Land survey and soil tests (10 test pits and boreholes)
$12,329 · still needs $12,329 · Planned
How we reached this figure: Our estimate
Can start before approvals
-
Campus master plan by an architect and a physical planner
$16,438 · still needs $16,438 · Planned
How we reached this figure: Our estimate
Can start before approvals
-
Environmental and social impact assessment for the whole campus, and NEMA fees
$24,658 · still needs $24,658 · Planned
How we reached this figure: Full assessment, because the campus has health-care waste, boreholes and a power plant. Our estimate
Can start before approvals
-
Six months of meetings with refugee welfare councils, host community leaders and the district, with interpreters
$8,219 · still needs $8,219 · Planned
How we reached this figure: Our estimate
Can start before approvals
-
Baseline survey of 1,500 refugee and host households, by an independent firm, so the change can be measured
$32,877 · still needs $32,877 · Planned
How we reached this figure: Our estimate
Can start before approvals
-
Building plan approval fees for every building
$6,849 · still needs $6,849 · Planned
How we reached this figure: Our estimate
Can start before approvals
-
Legal work: the company that holds earned income, and the agreements with the district and partners
$10,959 · still needs $10,959 · Planned
How we reached this figure: Spec 13 requires any business arm to be a separate company owned by the foundation. Our estimate
Can start before approvals
-
Roads, drainage and fences $341,644 · still needs $341,644 · Planned
-
Upgrading 1 km of the access road to all-weather gravel, with culverts
$60,274 · still needs $60,274 · Planned
How we reached this figure: 1 km at UGX 220 million a km; our estimate
-
2.5 km of gravel roads inside the campus
$82,192 · still needs $82,192 · Planned
How we reached this figure: 2.5 km at UGX 120 million a km; our estimate
-
Paved footpaths between the buildings, 2 m wide
$41,096 · still needs $41,096 · Planned
How we reached this figure: 2,000 m2 at UGX 75,000 per m2; our estimate
-
Stormwater drains across the campus
$32,877 · still needs $32,877 · Planned
How we reached this figure: Our estimate
-
Fence around the whole campus, 2,400 m
$85,479 · still needs $85,479 · Planned
How we reached this figure: 2,400 m at UGX 130,000 a metre
-
Main gate, gatehouse and a shelter for visitors
$23,288 · still needs $23,288 · Planned
How we reached this figure: Our estimate
-
3,000 trees for shade, windbreaks and fruit, and grass against erosion
$16,438 · still needs $16,438 · Planned
How we reached this figure: Our estimate. Nakivale has lost most of its trees to firewood
-
Security and campus services $252,883 · still needs $252,883 · Planned
-
60 solar street lights
$49,320 · still needs $49,320 · Planned
$822 a street light, 60 needed
How we reached this figure: 60 at UGX 3,000,000 each, with pole; our estimate
-
Cameras at the gates and roads, and a monitoring room
$16,438 · still needs $16,438 · Planned
How we reached this figure: Our estimate
-
Waste sorting and compost station
$10,959 · still needs $10,959 · Planned
How we reached this figure: Our estimate
-
Campus office, maintenance workshop and stores
$89,041 · still needs $89,041 · Planned
How we reached this figure: 250 m2 at UGX 1,300,000 per m2 (R_STD)
-
Maintenance tools and equipment
$10,959 · still needs $10,959 · Planned
How we reached this figure: Our estimate
-
A four-wheel-drive pickup for the campus team
$63,014 · still needs $63,014 · Planned
How we reached this figure: Uganda price with taxes; our estimate
-
4 motorcycles for the campus team
$13,152 · still needs $13,152 · Planned
$3,288 a motorcycle, 4 needed
How we reached this figure: 4 at UGX 12,000,000
-
Managing the building work $123,287 · still needs $123,287 · Planned
-
Donum's own project manager and clerk of works for 30 months
$98,630 · still needs $98,630 · Planned
How we reached this figure: UGX 12,000,000 a month for both, 30 months
-
Independent audit of the building spending, once a year for 3 years
$24,657 · still needs $24,657 · Planned
$8,219 a yearly audit, 3 needed
How we reached this figure: 3 at UGX 30,000,000
-
Fees, taxes and contingency $286,876 · still needs $286,876 · Planned
-
Architect, engineers, quantity surveyor and site supervision (8% of the building work)
$35,342 · still needs $35,342 · Planned
How we reached this figure: 8% of $441,644 building and outside works; usual practice in Uganda
Can start before approvals
-
Allowance for prices rising before building starts (6%)
$26,493 · still needs $26,493 · Planned
How we reached this figure: 6% of building and outside works. Uganda inflation was 4.6% a year to Sep 2026, and energy and fuel 14.5% (UBOS)
-
VAT on the builder's contract and fees (18%), unless Donum obtains an exemption
$90,630 · still needs $90,630 · Planned
How we reached this figure: 18% of works, price allowance and fees. If an exemption is granted, this line is returned to the project's other items
-
Contingency for what nobody can see yet (10%)
$134,411 · still needs $134,411 · Planned
How we reached this figure: 10% of everything above. Whatever is not used goes to this project's running costs (its endowment)
-
Keeping it running: its share of the Donum Endowment $5,662,500 · still needs $5,662,500 · Planned
-
Staff pay, for good: paid every year from the endowment's returns
$3,857,500 · still needs $3,857,500 · Planned
How we reached this figure: $154,300 a year divided by 4%
-
Fuel, supplies and services, for good: paid every year from the endowment's returns
$477,500 · still needs $477,500 · Planned
How we reached this figure: $19,100 a year divided by 4%
-
Upkeep and servicing, for good: paid every year from the endowment's returns
$127,500 · still needs $127,500 · Planned
How we reached this figure: $5,100 a year divided by 4%
-
Replacing equipment as it wears out, for good: paid every year from the endowment's returns
$272,500 · still needs $272,500 · Planned
How we reached this figure: $10,900 a year divided by 4%
-
Insurance, for good: paid every year from the endowment's returns
$147,500 · still needs $147,500 · Planned
How we reached this figure: $5,900 a year divided by 4%
-
Audits, licences and surveys, for good: paid every year from the endowment's returns
$780,000 · still needs $780,000 · Planned
How we reached this figure: $31,200 a year divided by 4%
-
Read more: running costs, line by line
| Running cost | A year |
|---|---|
| Campus team: manager, accounts, stores, maintenance, 12 security guards, grounds, drivers (30 people, with NSSF and medical cover) | $154,300 |
| Fuel and servicing for the pickup and motorcycles | $16,400 |
| Upkeep of roads, drains, fences and grounds (1.5% of their cost) | $5,100 |
| Replacing the pickup and motorcycles over their life (7 years) | $10,900 |
| Insurance of campus buildings and equipment (0.4%) | $5,900 |
| Independent audit of the Nakivale accounts | $8,200 |
| Community meetings and a way to raise a complaint | $6,600 |
| Yearly independent follow-up survey, to measure what changed | $16,400 |
| Local rates and permits | $2,700 |
| Total | $226,500 |
These are estimates, in 2026 prices. Before anything is bought, a quote from a builder or seller we checked replaces each one, and this page shows the change.
Who runs it, who pays, and who else is there
Model A. Donum owns and runs the campus. Its running costs (a team of 30, mostly security and maintenance) are paid from the endowment.
- The Office of the Prime Minister allocates land inside the settlement; outside it, land is bought and titled like anyone else's.
Read more: keeping it running
Donum Foundation owns the land and every building on it, and its campus team keeps them in repair: roads, drains, fences, lights and grounds. The team of about 30 (manager, accounts, stores, five tradespeople, twelve security guards in shifts, grounds, drivers) is paid from the Nakivale endowment, as are fuel, upkeep at 1.5% of the cost of the outside works each year, insurance, a yearly independent audit and a yearly follow-up survey. Replacing vehicles is saved for every year.
Running it costs $226,500 a year, paid from the returns of its share of the Donum Endowment.
What it will achieve
- Everything else depends on it: no land, no buildings.
- A baseline survey of 1,500 refugee and host households, which every later result is measured against.
- 3,000 trees on land that has lost most of its trees to firewood (Global Platform for Action on Sustainable Energy in Displacement Settings, 2023-05-06), counted alive at one and two years.
Read more: how we worked these numbers out
Without a shared campus each of the five places would need its own guards, fence, road and maintenance team. The campus's $226,500 a year carries them all once.
How we will know
- Title registered in Donum Foundation's name
- Every approval recorded on the chance page
- Baseline survey published
- Trees alive after two years
Read more: what could go wrong
- No titled land near enough people. If no plot outside the settlement has 20,000 people within 5 km, we ask the Office of the Prime Minister to allocate land inside the settlement instead, with a long written allocation on land not used for refugees' plots. The land line is then not spent, and Donum holds an allocation rather than a title, which matters least for the school and the health centre, since the public side runs them under the partnership.
- No suitable land for sale, or the price is higher. The land line is set above current listings. If a plot costs more, the extra comes from contingency and is shown on the page; if no plot is found near enough, the campus moves to the next settlement on our list.
- Leaders of either community are not consulted well. Six months of meetings are budgeted before anything is built, and a way to raise a complaint stays open for as long as the campus exists.
Questions people ask
Why not build inside the settlement?
Nobody can hold a title there, so nobody can own what is built, and the land is full. Inside is the fallback if no titled plot nearby has 20,000 people within 5 km.
Why 70 acres?
About 36 for the buildings and 34 for the training farm and its model gardens.
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