The Government of Uganda has launched an emergency food relief programme for the Karamoja sub-region as the hunger crisis worsens, with at least 19 people reported dead following a prolonged dry spell that has devastated crops and left thousands of families without food.
The intervention, announced by the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) on Monday, aims to support communities whose agricultural production was disrupted by months of drought, resulting in depleted household food stocks and increasing food insecurity.
Under the programme, the government will distribute 9,419,610 kilograms of relief food, comprising maize flour and dry beans, to 313,987 households across 480 parishes in the nine districts of the Karamoja sub-region.
The relief operation is being coordinated by the Office of the Prime Minister in partnership with the National Enterprise Corporation (NEC), the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF), the Uganda Prisons Service, the Uganda Police Force and local governments to ensure efficient and transparent distribution.
The intervention comes amid growing concern over the humanitarian situation in Karamoja, where an estimated 473,000 people are currently facing acute food insecurity, according to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC).
Prime Minister Rt. Hon. Robinah Nabbanja officially flagged off the emergency food relief at the NEC headquarters in Bugolobi, Kampala.
“The Government stands with the people of Karamoja and will continue to mobilise the necessary resources to support their recovery and build resilience against future shocks,” Nabbanja said.
All leaders and officials involved in the exercise have been directed to ensure the relief food reaches the intended beneficiaries without diversion.
Minister for Relief, Disaster Preparedness and Refugees Hon. Sam Engola appealed to political, religious and community leaders, civil society organisations and beneficiaries to support the exercise by promoting transparency, accountability and peaceful distribution of the relief food.
The government said it remains committed to long-term interventions aimed at strengthening resilience against recurrent droughts in Karamoja.
Permanent Secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister Alex Kakooza said the government will continue to monitor the food security situation in Karamoja and neighbouring districts while coordinating both immediate humanitarian assistance and long-term resilience interventions under the recently approved Karamoja Regional Development Plan.
The Ugandan government launched an emergency food relief dispatch of 790 metric tons of maize flour and beans to the hardest-hit districts
The crisis is rooted in widespread crop failure and diminished food availability following a prolonged dry spell that began in May. The region’s nine districts are operating under severe crisis levels, with Kaabong, Kotido, Moroto, Karenga, and Nabilatuk experiencing the most devastating outcomes. Local hospitals, such as the one in Kaabong, are severely overcrowded with children suffering from acute malnutrition
