A rural farmer here in Kamuli, in eastern Uganda. My own life has been a mess. But looking at people’s circumstances in my region as a whole, I have decided not to sit back.
I am also founder of the Uganda Community Farm (UCF), a nonprofit social enterprise that aims to put the rural poor in the remotest areas of eastern Uganda on a self-sustainable path from poverty.
Hi Nick, thanks so much for this. Until 2013, northern Uganda was the poorest region in Uganda, and until 2016, Karamoja, a sub-region of northern Uganda, was the poorest not just in northern Uganda, but in Uganda overall. A few details:
1) From 2013 to date, the poorest region in Uganda has been eastern Uganda. The Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) says in this 2019 report that “the poorest region in the country had always been the northern region until 2013, but it is now the eastern region”.
A 2023 report by the World Bank also put the poverty rate in eastern Uganda and northern Uganda at 42% and 40% respectively.
2). However, even after eastern Uganda became the poorest in Uganda (in 2013), Karamoja (in northern Uganda) remained the poorest sub-region in Uganda overall, but only until ~2016.
When Karamoja was still regarded the poorest sub-region in Uganda, its poverty rate was 74% (as a share of regional poverty, not nationally), and it still is 74% even today.
3). But the National Household Survey (by UBOS) both in 2016/2017 and 2021/2022 said Busoga has now overtaken Karamoja—and is currently the poorest region in Uganda—with a poverty rate of 14% (as a share of national poverty), and 74.8% within Busoga itself.
4) Here is a 2019 publicationby The Monitor referencing the UBOS 2016/2017 National Household Survey and placing Busoga’s poverty rate at 74.8%.
5) The New Vision in 2022 also said Busoga is currently “the poorest region in the country”.
6). The Monitor in 2021 said “the sub-region (Busoga) still contributes the largest percentage of poor people in the country”.
7). In 2023, The Monitor, referencing UBOS’ 2021/2022 National Household Survey, also wrote: “Busoga is the sub-region with most people living in a complete poverty cycle followed by Bukedea and Karamoja. This is according to findings released in 2021/2022 by Mr Vincent Fred Senono, the Principal Statistician and head of analysis at the Uganda National Bureau of Statistics“.
8). Incidentally, in UBOS’s 2019/2020 National Household Survey, Karamoja DIDN’T even feature in the first three regions with the highest percentage of poor people nationally. The first was Busoga (14%) followed by Bukedi (10.4%) and Acholi (10.3%) See details on page 101 of UBOS’s 2019 National Household Survey here (PDF).