NTUNGAMO – The Uganda Red Cross Society (URCS) in Ntungamo has announced the indefinite suspension of the SkyBird Programme, a critical Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) initiative valued at Shs 280 million.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!The development was confirmed on Friday, June 5, 2026, by Frank Namara, the Project Supervisor for the Uganda Red Cross Society, during a tense meeting held at the organization’s Ntungamo Branch offices.
The project, which uniquely integrated gender-responsive WASH services with livelihood support and disaster resilience in Nyabihoko sub-county, Kajara County, has become an indirect casualty of the geopolitical conflict arising from the war between the US and Russia in Europe.
Officially halted after donor countries suspended their funding, the programme was implemented under the Uganda Red Cross Society with financial backing from the Austrian Development Cooperation and the Austrian Red Cross.
Namara explained that the SkyBird Project was not limited to Ntungamo but was being implemented across multiple branches of the Red Cross in Uganda.
He cited Nyabihoko specifically, where the funds facilitated the construction of protected springs, drilling of boreholes, and robust community campaigns against Gender-Based Violence (GBV).
“Due to the global wars in Europe, most of the funds we were expecting have been suspended. This has exerted immense pressure on the Red Cross Society, forcing us to lay down some projects until we secure alternative funders,” Namara said.
Namara urged local leaders to self-fund community projects, reduce reliance on external donors, and avoid dependence that exposes communities to sudden funding cuts, undermining long-term sustainability.
The Vice Chairman of the Branch Governing Board, Aggrey Byarugaba, called for calm among Red Cross members and beneficiaries in Nyabihoko Sub County, pledging that leadership was already exploring alternatives.
“We ask you to be patient. This is not the end of the road. We are already moving to look for other partners to fill this gap,” Byarugaba assured.
Branch Manager Hilary Asimire commended the architects of the SkyBird Project for its innovative design, revealing that 25,228 individuals were slated to benefit from the now-halted interventions.
Asimire described the project’s architecture as solid and a model for combining clean water access with fighting poverty and violence, while pledging to secure another donor to revive the dream.
Mayor Jacob Kafureeka of Ntungamo Municipality attended the meeting and offered a sober reflection, commending the Red Cross for its historic work in supporting the less privileged while lamenting the sudden halt.
“The work the Red Cross has done to uplift the most vulnerable in our community is commendable. But this is a heavy blow. It reminds us that while we appreciate foreign aid, we must urgently build our own local resilience,” Kafureeka said.
Meanwhile, operations at Nyabihoko’s water springs and borehole sites have been halted, as residents wait to see if the Red Cross can find a new partner before recent gains are reversed.
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