KAMPALA: In a country where land disputes have become one of the leading sources of conflict, one woman has emerged as an unlikely but formidable face in the fight against land grabbing – Presidential Advisor and Senior Presidential Assistant on Special Duties, Phiona Barungi.
Soft-spoken but uncompromising, Barungi has built a reputation as a fearless defender of ordinary Ugandans who find themselves at the mercy of powerful individuals seeking to dispossess them of their land. Her work has increasingly placed her at the centre of some of Uganda’s most contentious land disputes, earning both admiration and criticism.
Barungi serves in the Office of the President as a Special Presidential Assistant on Special Duties, a role that has seen her become one of President Yoweri Museveni’s most visible aides on land matters. Government records show she has been attached to the Presidency in various capacities, often handling sensitive assignments involving land conflicts and complaints from citizens.
Her name first gained national prominence through her frequent interventions in land disputes across central Uganda. In December 2023, she publicly revealed that many land-grabbing schemes involved influential figures, including ministers, security officers and officials in land administration offices. She accused some public officials of using their positions to facilitate the illegal acquisition of land from vulnerable citizens.
Barungi’s work has taken her to districts across the country. In Kiryandongo, she joined government officials in addressing numerous complaints from residents who accused powerful individuals of grabbing their land. The intervention resulted in fresh investigations and renewed efforts to restore justice for affected communities.
She has also been vocal about the role of legal practitioners in land fraud. In 2024, she called for tougher laws against land grabbing and specifically urged government to crack down on law firms that aid fraudulent land transactions, arguing that the involvement of legal professionals has made it harder for victims to obtain justice.
Her approach has earned her praise from many ordinary Ugandans. Commentators have described her as the “unofficial face” of the Presidential Task Force on Land Matters and Environment, noting her high visibility and willingness to engage directly with victims through community meetings and social media platforms.
But Barungi’s activism has not been without controversy. She has occasionally found herself at the centre of legal disputes and accusations of taking sides in land wrangles, a reflection of the complex and emotionally charged nature of land conflicts in Uganda.
Despite the criticism, Barungi remains undeterred. She continues to travel across the country, listening to grievances from peasants, widows and families who claim to have been illegally evicted from their ancestral land.
At a time when land conflicts remain a ticking social and political time bomb, Phiona Barungi has become one of the most recognisable faces in Uganda’s battle against land grabbing. To supporters, she is a courageous defender of the powerless. To her critics, she is an activist operating in a minefield of competing interests.
Either way, the bare-knuckled presidential advisor has made one thing clear: when it comes to protecting people’s land, she is prepared for the fight.
