CAIA–Uganda takes festive campaign against illicit spirits to Arua  

Arua, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT |  The Coalition Against Illicit Alcohol Uganda Chapter (CAIA–Uganda), in partnership with the West Nile Education Trust Fund (WNETF) and other partners, held a community marathon on 27th Dec, 2025 in Arua.

This aimed at encouraging healthy lifestyle choices among communities in West Nile by avoiding drinking illicit alcohol as a way to promote University Education for All in West Nile.

The marathon featured multiple race distances of 21km, 10km, 5km, and 2km with over 500 participants from across the region and was officially flagged off from the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) in Arua, bringing together athletes, community members, government officials, elders, and other stakeholders.

It also served as a platform to highlight the direct link between illicit alcohol consumption and poor education outcomes in the region.

In many households, limited income that could support school fees, scholastic materials, and basic welfare is instead spent on illicit spirits, often resulting in financial strain, ill health, and reduced productivity among parents and guardians.

Furthermore, the health complications associated with illicit spirits weaken households, leaving caregivers unable to work consistently or meet the educational needs of their children.

Speaking on this, Angupale Swadik Alemi, the Deputy Resident City Commissioner (DRCC) of Arua City, a former Member of Parliament for Ayivu County and a founding member of the West Nile Education Trust Fund, noted that “when families lose income and health to illicit alcohol, education becomes the first casualty, yet education remains the strongest pathway to breaking poverty in our communities.”

In a bid to promote and encourage continuous conversations among communities in Arua about illicit alcohol, with support from the Boda Boda Association of Arua City, 40 Boda Boda Riders were onboarded as part of CAIA–Uganda’s initiative dubbed “Ebiboozi bya Boda”, loosely translated as Boda Boda Conversations.

This initiative leverages boda boda riders to actively engage passengers and community members in discussions about the dangers of illicit spirits, raise awareness on safer drinking practices, and encourage healthier lifestyle choices. As a flag-off of this initiative in Arua, a boda boda road show was held in areas with high traffic across Arua City.

Awaku Swadik, Chairman of the  Boda Boda Association of Arua City, and Mahadi Yusuf, Secretary General of the Boda Boda Union West Nile, expressed their commitment to the initiative, saying, “We are grateful to CAIA–Uganda for involving boda boda riders in this important campaign because we want our people to stay healthy”. Both pledged to work closely with the coalition by continuously following up with the riders to ensure they are actively engaging passengers and spreading the message about the existence and of illicit spirits in their communities.”

Ismail Yassin, a boda boda rider participating in the initiative, committed to the cause, saying, “I promise to always engage my passengers in conversations about the existence of illicit alcohol and encourage them to make safer choices for themselves and their families.”

In Arua, several reports in recent years have exposed the existence and consumption of illicit spirits in the district. In August 2022, over 17 people died and several others were hospitalized after consuming City 5 Alcohol, a locally produced gin later found to contain dangerously high levels of methanol.

Much as the production and sale of the toxic spirit, which had been widely circulated within Arua and neighbouring West Nile communities, was banned and those responsible were arrested, several other illicit alcoholic products continue to circulate on the market, posing ongoing health risks to unsuspecting consumers who don’t know about the existence of illicit spirits.

Okuni Tamimu, Refuse Scout, Central Division, Arua City, said, “Every day, as we collect rubbish in Arua, we come across countless bottles of illicit spirits. This shows how widespread their consumption is”. Fatuma, a Boda Boda rider in Arua, shared how she recently attended a burial of a community member who died as a result of illicit spirits.

It is this continued risk and widespread access to illicit alcohol that has informed CAIA–Uganda’s targeted interventions in Arua, particularly through engagement with the city’s large boda boda population. With thousands of boda boda riders operating daily, many of whom are also exposed to or consume illicit spirits, the sector provides a strategic platform for driving sustained community conversations about the dangers of illicit alcohol and promoting safer choices.

The Coalition further encourages legal drinking age adults who choose to drink to avoid illicit alcohol and opt for regulated products that meet established safety standards and ensure safeguarding against exposure to those under legal drinking age.

Through these efforts, the CAIA–Uganda aims to reduce harm, protect lives, and foster safer festive celebrations and the year 2026 in Arua.