A LETTER TO WON – DEO, WON NYACI ME LANGO:
By Dr. Bob Marley Achura
Global Health and Policy Expert
“Donors and governments do not fund rhetoric; they fund results, and results begin with reliable data.”
Three weeks ago, I wrote “From Uncoordinated Troop Movement to Collective Vision, Why Lango Must Present a Real Agenda during the President’s Visit.”
It drew intense reactions, some applauding, others defensive, but all pointing to one uncomfortable truth: Lango is planning in the dark.
We don’t have reliable, up-to-date data about ourselves. We don’t know, with certainty, how many children are enrolled in school, how many youths are at Lira University, or the fertility rate among our mothers. Ask a leader for the most basic numbers, the ratio of boys to girls in secondary schools, or the number of goats in a sub-county, and too often, the answer is vague or an uneducated guess!!
When Others Are Moving Ahead….
Yesterday, Busoga and Bunyoro kingdoms quietly implemented the very idea I proposed, signing a landmark MoU on data sharing and evidence-based planning. Bunyoro’s Prime Minister, Andrew Byakutaga, admitted that it took them five years to produce a credible strategic plan because they lacked accurate data. Five years of missed opportunities and well-intentioned guesswork. Meanwhile, we in Lango continue to make decisions guided by anecdotes instead of analytics.
“We cannot plan what we cannot measure, and we cannot measure what we refuse to count.”
Data Is the Foundation of Development
Governments and donors don’t fund passion; they fund proof. They invest in SMART proposals, Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound.
Without reliable data:
- Teachers end up in the wrong schools.
- Medicines reach the wrong clinics.
- Development programs miss the people who need them most.
Behind every missing statistic is a child unseen, a mother unsupported, a household uncounted. Data is not paperwork, it is infrastructure. It is the bridge between good intentions and tangible results.
So What Should Lango Do?
- Partner with UBOS.
Work directly with the Uganda Bureau of Statistics to access training, technical support, and structured data-sharing agreements. - Establish a Lango Data Centre.
Host a professional hub for data collection, analysis, and interpretation, ensuring Lango’s realities inform national and donor planning. - Train Decision-Makers in Data Use.
Equip district planners, MPs’ staff, and cultural leaders with skills in evidence-based decision-making. - Create a SMART Fundraising Agenda.
Develop a measurable, time-bound plan showing what the Data Centre will deliver, at what cost, and with what impact.
A Stern Word to the Leadership!!
Let me speak plainly.
I cannot and will not forgive you, together with my family, my grandchildren, and the entire clan under my influence, if no deliberate and strategic steps are taken to correct this failure. Do not invite the wrath of the OPUL ancestors by allowing negligence to masquerade as leadership.
Why such a strong warning?
Because, unlike your predecessors, this current leadership is one of the most academically endowed and professionally accomplished teams Lango has ever had, from Won-Deo Won Nyaci himself down to the office messenger. We have within our cultural structure seasoned experts, senior professionals, and distinguished academics across multiple disciplines. We can no longer hide behind the veil of ignorance or claim “we didn’t know better.” We do know better and therefore, we must do better.
This is not to diminish the legacy of past administrations. They did their best with what they had. The Won Nyaci emeritus was a respected agricultural expert, and his Prime Minister, a retired electrical engineer of integrity and vision. They laid foundations under much harsher financial constraints.
Back then, the government’s support to the institution could barely buy black tea for two nights of council meetings. Today, however, the landscape has changed. The government now allocates a significant budget to traditional institutions, perhaps not enough to transform Lango overnight, but certainly enough to make visible, tangible progress if well managed.
Let us therefore be honest: the problem is no longer a lack of funds. The problem is a lack of strategic direction. Leadership is not about allowances or ceremonial appearances. This is a voluntary calling, and our budget should reflect service, not self-gratification. Every shilling spent must speak to purpose, to data, to development, to dignity.
The money exists.
The opportunity exists.
What remains is the will to lead, and to lead right.
Learning from Others, Leading Ourselves
Busoga and Bunyoro have shown that data-driven leadership is not theory, it works. They didn’t “steal” the idea from Lango; they implemented it.
Their progress should not anger us; it should inspire and embarrass us into acting. When next the President visits, let us not carry empty wish lists or glossy photo albums. Let us present:
- A credible regional data system,
- Trained personnel, and
- A results-based budget linked to measurable outcomes.
That is how serious nations and serious leaders negotiate development.
From Guesswork to Vision
Our future cannot be built on assumptions. We cannot keep planning in darkness and expecting light. If Lango truly seeks transformation, we must first see ourselves clearly, through data.
“Data is the light by which a people find their way out of darkness. Let Lango switch it on.”
