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Uganda guide
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| © New Internationalist |
Uganda has been a success story for its fight against HIV/AIDS but admiration of the international community has lately been tempered by the protracted war with the Lord's Resistance Army and by the perceived slow progress towards true democracy. However, in search of better governance, the country has turned to a multi-party system, and the long-serving President Yoweri Museveni with his National Resistance Movement duly won the 2006 elections. Peace negotiations which could relieve the desperate poverty of over 2 million people in the north are moving very cautiously forward.
updated July 2007
Millennium Development Goals
Uganda presents both successes and failures in its progress towards attainment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Most creditably the country can claim great progress towards the target to halt and reverse the spread of HIV/AIDS. Also admired is the Universal Primary Education (UPE) programme which started in 1997 and which has increased enrolment from 3.1 million to 7.6 million (92%) in 2006 by allowing free attendance. The MDG target for gender equality in primary schools is regarded as already achieved. There are also moves to allow free secondary education for selected pupils.
By contrast, infant and maternal mortality rates give cause for much concern, the latter being amongst the highest in the world. Absolute poverty continues to be a nightmare, increasing by the day and unalleviated by the economic liberalization which has otherwise led to a remarkable economic recovery. Macro-economic indicators cannot hide the disturbing reality that the proportion of Ugandans living below the national poverty line has been static at around 35% throughout the period 2000-2005, falling to 31% in 2006.
High population growth also undermines economic progress. With an annual growth rate of about 3.3%, Uganda has one of the fastest growing populations worldwide. If this is left unchecked, it is feared that the population pressure will impose itself on social services, especially health and education, making it impossible to attain some of the MDGs.
The enduring conflict in northern Uganda is a serious constraint on poverty alleviation. Largely closed to aid agencies, the region lags behind in all areas - adult illiteracy rate of 54% compared to the national average of 37%, and a poverty rate of around 70%. The World Food Programme lacks adequate funds for 2007 to deal with the shortage of food for over 1 million people in the north.
A Poverty Eradication Action Plan (PEAP) was developed in 1997 and is revised every three years. Its goals include structural transformation, good governance and security. Although the aims of the PEAP are not exactly consistent with the MDGs, the Plan does provide a structured approach for addressing poverty and, subject to adequate financing, could assist Uganda in meeting the Goals. For example, the government has set itself a target to reduce poverty to 10% by 2017 in contrast to 28% by 2015 set by the MDGs.
Health and HIV/AIDS
Over 1 million people are infected with HIV in Uganda. AIDS has reduced life expectancy below 49 years and the deaths have created up to 1.5 million orphans. However, Uganda has been at the forefront of fighting the virus and remains an example to the world for having successfully educated the public and bringing down prevalence rates to 6.4% from a peak of over 8%. This has been achieved through political commitment and leadership, together with partnerships between different groups engaged in promoting the ABC approach of Abstinence, Be faithful and Condom use.
Since 2005 however there have been concerns that a change in policy might reverse these positive results. Apparently under pressure from US donors, the government placed greater emphasis on abstinence and restricted the distribution of condoms, creating shortages which attracted international attention. A complete U-turn in the school curriculum for HIV/AIDS is the most dramatic and worrying symptom of this policy change. Latest WHO figures published in 2006 do indeed show a small increase in prevalence, reversing the trend of recent years and jeopardizing a key MDG target.
Many HIV/AIDS non-government organizations have sprung up, encouraged by the Uganda Aids Commission. The government and donors have also initiated and scaled up HIV/AIDS treatment, building 150 centres where 78,000 people so far have access to free antiretrovirals(ARVs). The target is to raise the figure to 120,000 people during 2007, of which 15% should be children under 15 years of age. Observers say Uganda's treatment figures remain among the highest in Africa, even if a similar number remains unable to access ARVs. Health officials say that Uganda has the advantage of a good infrastructure for dispensing ARVs to keep pace with the available funding.
Physical access to health facilities has improved over the years and the current walkable distance of 5kms has increased the percentage of people within reach of medical attention. The doctor-to-population ratio registered an improvement from 1:18,000 in 2002 to 1:10,069 in 2004, and the nurse/midwife population ratio has improved from 1:2,800 to 1:730. Access to safe water has been enhanced, with about 50% of the population now covered.
Environment
The impact of climate change could create serious difficulties for Uganda’s poverty reduction plans for a number of different reasons. Prolonged drought and over-extraction have reduced the level of Lake Victoria to its lowest for over 60 years. The over-dependence on hydropower from that source has created serious energy shortages forcing many manufacturers to cut jobs or raise prices. Economic growth will be constrained until alternative sources are developed, as will prospects for 95% of the population who lack any access to electricity. With assistance from the World Bank, it seems likely that a 3rd hydropower dam fed by Lake Victoria will be constructed at Bujagali, bringing hopes of closing Uganda’s energy gap, although not without opposition from environmentalists.
Over 80% of employment is in agriculture which is very sensitive to changing rainfall patterns. For example, UNEP has published a study which concluded that a 2 degree rise in temperature would make it almost impossible to grow coffee beans in Uganda. And there is clear evidence that the glaciers of the Rwenzori mountains are in retreat, threatening the stability of the water cycle in the region. Uganda itself is not helping the cause of climate change by permitting an unusually high rate of deforestation, about 2% pa.
Politics
The current government under President Yoweri Museveni came to power following a civil war in 1986. Museveni was successful in the first presidential vote held in 1996 and again five years later but these elections took place within a "no-party" system in which all Ugandans are presumed to be members of Museveni's National Resistance Movement (NRM). Parliamentarians stood for election as individuals rather than party members.
Museveni has argued that his Movement system neutralises tribal rivalries that often dominate voting patterns in Africa. And he is certainly recognised for initiating numerous democratic and economic reforms during his long presidency.
However, the international donor community gradually became impatient with what it considered to be slow progress towards multi-party democracy. In a national referendum held in July 2005, 90 percent of Ugandans decided on a multi-party system and Parliament has amended the constitution accordingly - whilst simultaneously removing limits on the incumbent's terms of office.
Presidential and parliamentary elections were duly held in February 2006 but the transition to multi-party democracy has not been without controversy. Dr. Kizza Besigye, a close colleague of Museveni from the time of the civil war but latterly in political exile, announced his intention to run for the presidency, backed by the main opposition group, the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC). Almost immediately after his return Besigye was arrested and charged with treason and rape. Global reaction was extremely hostile to President Museveni and Besigye’s trial was adjourned while he fought the election. In the event, Museveni won the elections after campaigning on a platform that included fighting poverty and the introduction of socio-economic programmes such as universal education and microfinance. There was however criticism about the treatment of Mr.Besigye and the electoral bias of state media from the Head of the European observer mission.
Government critics say that Museveni’s plans are bound to fail because of endemic corruption, illustrated by embarrassing disclosures emerging from the inquiry into improper use of grants from The Global Fund to fight AIDS. As a result, Uganda failed to qualify for the sixth round of Global Fund grants in 2006. After winning the elections Museveni has however promised zero-tolerance for corruption.
Conflict
The country has enjoyed relative security and peace since the NRM came to power in 1986, but northern Uganda has not partaken of this peace because of a rebel group operating in the area. Over the last 20 years thousands of people have been killed in a conflict with the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) which has been characterised by the most appalling atrocities, including the abduction of over 25,000 children to serve as soldiers and sex slaves. Two million people, almost the entire population of the region, were at one time displaced and living in camps. Originally a remnant of the 1980’s civil war, it has never been clear what the LRA stands for or who it represents. Frustration at both the UN and the Museveni government for failing to bring an end to the conflict led to a Security Council resolution in January 2006 calling on the Ugandan government to do more to protect the population.
The LRA is known to have used southern Sudan as a base for its activities and the 2005 peace settlement in that region raised hopes of a similar resolution in Uganda. Indeed it was the Sudanese who brokered negotiations which led to a truce agreement signed in August 2006. Talks to end the war in northern Uganda hosted by the Government of Southern Sudan (GoSS) have proved highly fragile but, with the involvement of neighbouring countries and the new UN envoy to Uganda, former Mozambique president Joaquim Chissano, tentative outline agreement has been reached on the majority of agenda items. One key component is the assembly of remaining LRA forces at a designated point in Sudan, their safe passage to be permitted by the Ugandan army.
A fundamental tension underlying the talks stems from the decision towards the end of 2005 by the International Criminal Court (ICC) to indict the rebel leader Joseph Kony and deputy Vincent Otti. The Ugandan president now proposes talks with the ICC to advocate an alternative form of national justice to trigger a breakthrough to a long term settlement, but international groups are uneasy about compromising crimes against humanity. Both sides contemplate a potential role for local traditional forms of justice known as mato oput.
The relative lull in violence has nevertheless prompted moves towards resettlement of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) living in camps, backed by financial and logistical support of aid agencies. UNHCR estimates that about 300,000 IDPs may have returned by the end of 2006 leaving a further 1.2 million reluctant to move without greater confidence over their security and prospective livelihoods.
Economy
Direct budget support for Uganda has been suspended or diverted by a number of European donor countries over governance concerns and the treatment of opposition politician Dr. Kizza Besigye. With a national budget that is over 40 percent donor funded, Uganda is vulnerable and lost some $73 million as donors cut aid in 2005.
Agriculture, the mainstay of the majority of people, accounts for 40% of GDP and is largely reliant on cash crops - coffee, cotton, tea - but now more diversified to include non-traditional cash crops like fish, vanilla and tourism. Uganda has reached the completion point under the Highly Indebted Poor Countries Initiative (HIPC) and its debt situation has been transformed following the relief announced at the July 2005 G8 summit.
After selling off most of its assets through the Privatization Unit the government has put its faith in the private sector and identified it as the engine for economic growth. Efforts are made to encourage foreign investment in the country with the aim of reducing high unemployment levels.
Information and Media
Ugandans enjoy a measurable level of freedom of expression with various newspapers and radio stations having been founded under the current regime. The media is a source of extensive and vibrant political news. The largest newspaper in Uganda is the government-owned The New Vision, followed by the independent The Monitor. The Kenya-based weekly The East African is also popular.
In addition to the three main newspapers, there are several other papers published in local languages and with independent content. Journalists have also left the main newspapers to start their own papers, such as Weekly Observer and Sunrise.
The radio sector, which was liberalized in 1987 under the Broadcasting Statute for TV and Radio, has led to a boom in radio stations. There are currently over 100 FM radio stations registered with the Ugandan Broadcasting Corporation, but because of a lack of frequencies, only about 80 are operational. Many of the radio stations run call-in shows, which encourage listeners to call in and discuss current affairs issues.
Uganda’s Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) sector is the fastest growing in the country. But about 88% of the people live in the rural areas where telecommunications access and services are not available. However, there has been some improvement and the authorities aspire to provide universal access
Esther Nakkazi is a professional journalist based in Kampala, Uganda. She writes on health, science and developmental issues facing the region and is a freelance reporter based at the Kampala Bureau of the regional newspaper, The East African. She has been awarded a Knight Science Fellowship for 2007/08 at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
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| Hunger walk, Uganda © Mbabazi Morgan |
By contrast, infant and maternal mortality rates give cause for much concern, the latter being amongst the highest in the world. Absolute poverty continues to be a nightmare, increasing by the day and unalleviated by the economic liberalization which has otherwise led to a remarkable economic recovery. Macro-economic indicators cannot hide the disturbing reality that the proportion of Ugandans living below the national poverty line has been static at around 35% throughout the period 2000-2005, falling to 31% in 2006.
High population growth also undermines economic progress. With an annual growth rate of about 3.3%, Uganda has one of the fastest growing populations worldwide. If this is left unchecked, it is feared that the population pressure will impose itself on social services, especially health and education, making it impossible to attain some of the MDGs.
|
| Uganda - displaced persons © Médecins Sans Frontières Canada |
A Poverty Eradication Action Plan (PEAP) was developed in 1997 and is revised every three years. Its goals include structural transformation, good governance and security. Although the aims of the PEAP are not exactly consistent with the MDGs, the Plan does provide a structured approach for addressing poverty and, subject to adequate financing, could assist Uganda in meeting the Goals. For example, the government has set itself a target to reduce poverty to 10% by 2017 in contrast to 28% by 2015 set by the MDGs.
Health and HIV/AIDS
|
| AIDS orphans in Uganda © United Nations Children's Fund |
Since 2005 however there have been concerns that a change in policy might reverse these positive results. Apparently under pressure from US donors, the government placed greater emphasis on abstinence and restricted the distribution of condoms, creating shortages which attracted international attention. A complete U-turn in the school curriculum for HIV/AIDS is the most dramatic and worrying symptom of this policy change. Latest WHO figures published in 2006 do indeed show a small increase in prevalence, reversing the trend of recent years and jeopardizing a key MDG target.
Many HIV/AIDS non-government organizations have sprung up, encouraged by the Uganda Aids Commission. The government and donors have also initiated and scaled up HIV/AIDS treatment, building 150 centres where 78,000 people so far have access to free antiretrovirals(ARVs). The target is to raise the figure to 120,000 people during 2007, of which 15% should be children under 15 years of age. Observers say Uganda's treatment figures remain among the highest in Africa, even if a similar number remains unable to access ARVs. Health officials say that Uganda has the advantage of a good infrastructure for dispensing ARVs to keep pace with the available funding.
Physical access to health facilities has improved over the years and the current walkable distance of 5kms has increased the percentage of people within reach of medical attention. The doctor-to-population ratio registered an improvement from 1:18,000 in 2002 to 1:10,069 in 2004, and the nurse/midwife population ratio has improved from 1:2,800 to 1:730. Access to safe water has been enhanced, with about 50% of the population now covered.
Environment
The impact of climate change could create serious difficulties for Uganda’s poverty reduction plans for a number of different reasons. Prolonged drought and over-extraction have reduced the level of Lake Victoria to its lowest for over 60 years. The over-dependence on hydropower from that source has created serious energy shortages forcing many manufacturers to cut jobs or raise prices. Economic growth will be constrained until alternative sources are developed, as will prospects for 95% of the population who lack any access to electricity. With assistance from the World Bank, it seems likely that a 3rd hydropower dam fed by Lake Victoria will be constructed at Bujagali, bringing hopes of closing Uganda’s energy gap, although not without opposition from environmentalists.
Over 80% of employment is in agriculture which is very sensitive to changing rainfall patterns. For example, UNEP has published a study which concluded that a 2 degree rise in temperature would make it almost impossible to grow coffee beans in Uganda. And there is clear evidence that the glaciers of the Rwenzori mountains are in retreat, threatening the stability of the water cycle in the region. Uganda itself is not helping the cause of climate change by permitting an unusually high rate of deforestation, about 2% pa.
Politics
|
| Yoweri Museveni © allAfrica.com |
Museveni has argued that his Movement system neutralises tribal rivalries that often dominate voting patterns in Africa. And he is certainly recognised for initiating numerous democratic and economic reforms during his long presidency.
However, the international donor community gradually became impatient with what it considered to be slow progress towards multi-party democracy. In a national referendum held in July 2005, 90 percent of Ugandans decided on a multi-party system and Parliament has amended the constitution accordingly - whilst simultaneously removing limits on the incumbent's terms of office.
Presidential and parliamentary elections were duly held in February 2006 but the transition to multi-party democracy has not been without controversy. Dr. Kizza Besigye, a close colleague of Museveni from the time of the civil war but latterly in political exile, announced his intention to run for the presidency, backed by the main opposition group, the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC). Almost immediately after his return Besigye was arrested and charged with treason and rape. Global reaction was extremely hostile to President Museveni and Besigye’s trial was adjourned while he fought the election. In the event, Museveni won the elections after campaigning on a platform that included fighting poverty and the introduction of socio-economic programmes such as universal education and microfinance. There was however criticism about the treatment of Mr.Besigye and the electoral bias of state media from the Head of the European observer mission.
Government critics say that Museveni’s plans are bound to fail because of endemic corruption, illustrated by embarrassing disclosures emerging from the inquiry into improper use of grants from The Global Fund to fight AIDS. As a result, Uganda failed to qualify for the sixth round of Global Fund grants in 2006. After winning the elections Museveni has however promised zero-tolerance for corruption.
Conflict
|
| Child soldier, Uganda © World Vision United States |
The LRA is known to have used southern Sudan as a base for its activities and the 2005 peace settlement in that region raised hopes of a similar resolution in Uganda. Indeed it was the Sudanese who brokered negotiations which led to a truce agreement signed in August 2006. Talks to end the war in northern Uganda hosted by the Government of Southern Sudan (GoSS) have proved highly fragile but, with the involvement of neighbouring countries and the new UN envoy to Uganda, former Mozambique president Joaquim Chissano, tentative outline agreement has been reached on the majority of agenda items. One key component is the assembly of remaining LRA forces at a designated point in Sudan, their safe passage to be permitted by the Ugandan army.
A fundamental tension underlying the talks stems from the decision towards the end of 2005 by the International Criminal Court (ICC) to indict the rebel leader Joseph Kony and deputy Vincent Otti. The Ugandan president now proposes talks with the ICC to advocate an alternative form of national justice to trigger a breakthrough to a long term settlement, but international groups are uneasy about compromising crimes against humanity. Both sides contemplate a potential role for local traditional forms of justice known as mato oput.
The relative lull in violence has nevertheless prompted moves towards resettlement of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) living in camps, backed by financial and logistical support of aid agencies. UNHCR estimates that about 300,000 IDPs may have returned by the end of 2006 leaving a further 1.2 million reluctant to move without greater confidence over their security and prospective livelihoods.
Economy
Direct budget support for Uganda has been suspended or diverted by a number of European donor countries over governance concerns and the treatment of opposition politician Dr. Kizza Besigye. With a national budget that is over 40 percent donor funded, Uganda is vulnerable and lost some $73 million as donors cut aid in 2005.
Agriculture, the mainstay of the majority of people, accounts for 40% of GDP and is largely reliant on cash crops - coffee, cotton, tea - but now more diversified to include non-traditional cash crops like fish, vanilla and tourism. Uganda has reached the completion point under the Highly Indebted Poor Countries Initiative (HIPC) and its debt situation has been transformed following the relief announced at the July 2005 G8 summit.
After selling off most of its assets through the Privatization Unit the government has put its faith in the private sector and identified it as the engine for economic growth. Efforts are made to encourage foreign investment in the country with the aim of reducing high unemployment levels.
Information and Media
Ugandans enjoy a measurable level of freedom of expression with various newspapers and radio stations having been founded under the current regime. The media is a source of extensive and vibrant political news. The largest newspaper in Uganda is the government-owned The New Vision, followed by the independent The Monitor. The Kenya-based weekly The East African is also popular.
In addition to the three main newspapers, there are several other papers published in local languages and with independent content. Journalists have also left the main newspapers to start their own papers, such as Weekly Observer and Sunrise.
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| Computers for Ugandan school © Global Humanitaria |
Uganda’s Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) sector is the fastest growing in the country. But about 88% of the people live in the rural areas where telecommunications access and services are not available. However, there has been some improvement and the authorities aspire to provide universal access
Esther Nakkazi is a professional journalist based in Kampala, Uganda. She writes on health, science and developmental issues facing the region and is a freelance reporter based at the Kampala Bureau of the regional newspaper, The East African. She has been awarded a Knight Science Fellowship for 2007/08 at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
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