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Paper short abstract:

This paper takes a relational approach and explores the way residents, clan councillors and government officials experience and partake in care practices in Kisoro District, Uganda.

Paper long abstract:

In Uganda, as in many African countries, the provision of care is divided between a multitude of different actors, ranging from the Ugandan state to NGOs or local grassroots organizations to all kinds of informal self-help groups with which people try to protect themselves against various risks. In Kisoro District, an important group of care givers are the so called clan councils. Clan councils take up important roles in providing social welfare services to rural villagers. They aid in medical care, arrange burials, borrow loans, provide security and settle the majority of small disputes in the District. Although not officially recognized by the Ugandan state, they are often popularly seen as the starting point of local government. Their semi-official status gives them an aura of legitimate authority that allows them to compete with and co-exist next to the Ugandan state in providing welfare services. While tensions have existed for some time between the Ugandan state and clan councils, discussions about the role of the state as (health)care provider have flared up again since the start of the Covid pandemic in early 2020. Questions arise to what extent the state still has a prominent role in providing social welfare. In this paper I take a relational approach and study how residents, clan councillors and government officials take part in webs of social (power) relationships. I explore the way in which meanings and practices of care influence people’s understanding of ‘the state’ and shape local governance practices in Kisoro District.