Uganda is one of the fastest growing countries in Sub-Saharan Africa but it is still one of the poorest nations in the world. The country reduced its number of people living in poverty a lot during not least 2006-2013 but it is hard to maintain or add to this improvement. This has a lot to do with the inability to sustainably provide sufficient sanitation, electricity, health and well-being, education, and nutrition.
Northern Uganda is particularly affected due to the combined effects of long and violent conflicts, extreme weather conditions and food insecurity. As a result, the area continues to lag behind the rest of the country in terms of most human development indicators, with women being disproportionately affected.
Our project is targeting the Pader district which was noticeably affected by the civil war that plagued the region between the 1980s and 2008. The region falls behind the rest of the country’s development and is characterized by high levels of poverty, high infant mortality, often due to acute diarrhea.
Sanitation remains a challenge in Northern Uganda with only 30% of the households having improved toilet facilities, and about 600,000 households lacking any type of toilet facility completely. Safe water access is around 62% (2019) and 39% of the around 230,000 people living in the project area still practice open defecation.
(Background provided by Amref Health Africa)