Uganda Report 2012 FINAL PO:Layout 1 - ACORD

The Plan for Modernisation of Agriculture (PMA), which
is a multi-sectoral policy framework for agriculture and
rural development, has over time been guiding the
policy environment for the agricultural sector in
Uganda, but the northern part of the country did not
gain much from PMA due to the conflict at the time. On
the other hand, the Peace, Recovery and Development
Plan (PRDP), among others, sets out several initiatives
on improving food security in the north of Uganda
(Acholi, Teso, Lango, West Nile and Karamoja), but
with primary focus on infrastructural development
such as roads etc. Other glaring missing links exist in
the Food Security Plan (2008-09) of Action (PoA) for
Northern Uganda as it does not draw a link with
HIV&AIDS. Similarly, the Rural Development Strategy
(RDS) formulated in 2005 has performed so dismally
especially for the north of the country in as far as
raising household incomes is concerned.
Overall, the recently launched National Development
Plan (NDP) 2010/11-2014/15 treats agriculture as one
of the primary growth sectors, and recognises that
food security has been unsatisfactory since 1992 in
Uganda 70 . Although it is noted that the country’s
average caloric intake per person per day improved in
the last 8 years, it still remains less than what the WHO
recommends daily. On the other hand, the NDP
recognises that HIV&AIDS remains a major
development challenge in Uganda requiring
enhancement of livelihoods and economic
empowerment of affected communities and
households. Although the NDP identifies “scaling up of
social support to affected households”, it does not
spell out the food security and nutrition needs of PLHA
or improved agricultural production among
communities and households ravaged by HIV&AIDS
such as those in post-conflict area. The gaps in the
policy and planning environment notwithstanding,
there are opportunities that can be seized on to lobby
and advocate for policy review and change with a view
of incorporating in unequivocal manner the issue of
community vulnerability to HIV&AIDS in food insecure
setting in post-conflict Uganda.
Apart from national policies and plans that address
issues of food insecurity in the context of HIV &AIDS in
conflict and post-conflict areas, there are international
strategies that provide opportunity for enhancing food
security in the context of HIV&AIDS. For instance, the
FAO Strategy for addressing the impact of HIV&AIDS
and other diseases of poverty on nutrition, food
security and rural livelihoods (2005-2015) can serve as
a guide for all possible interventions. In particular, the
FAO Strategy identifies the following six priority
intervention areas:
• Strengthening capacity of member countries
• Improving access to and adoption of agricultural
technologies
• Strengthening capacity of local governance
structures
• Empowering vulnerable communities
• Strengthening policy dialogue and advocacy
• Nutrition
It has to be noted that the proposed humanitarian
priority interventions, with a particular relevance to
FAO’s mandate are the development and delivery of a
minimum package of services for communities in order
to ensure access to:
• Food and nutritional services
• Adequate quantities and quality of seeds and tools
• HIV&AIDS prevention, care and impact mitigation
responses
• Protection from sudden onset (natural) disasters
and epidemic outbreaks.
The above findings therefore reveal that promoters and
advocates of food security and agricultural production
in post-conflict zones, which are hard hit by the
HIV&AIDS epidemic, have the opportunity of pushing
food security issues onto the local and international
policy agenda.
70 GOU (2010) National Development Plan (NDP)
2010/11-2014/15
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