The Anatomy of A Silent Crisis The Anatomy of A Silent Crisis

Case Study
26 Forum 2009: Climate Change – The Anatomy of a Silent Crisis
Uganda — A drought-plagued country
Perpetual droughts have plagued Uganda since the 1960s, usually occurring every 5 to 10
years. However, drought frequency and intensity is rapidly worsening as the country experienced
drought seven times between 1991 and 2000. 79,80 For example, the Karamoja region has suffered
from extreme drought for two straight years. 81 According to the UN World Food Programme, Uganda
is on the edge of a humanitarian catastrophe as drought reduced agricultural output by as much as
30 percent in some areas in 2008. 79,82 Drought compounds food shortages, and food production is
now lagging behind population growth rates. 83 This will likely lead to an impending crisis in the near
future unless more food becomes available.
Over 80 percent of Uganda’s 31 million people rely on rain-fed subsistence farming, and
agriculture accounted for over 33 percent of national GDP in 2002-2003. 83 Over 40 percent of deaths
among Uganda children are due to malnutrition, largely a result of food shortages from chronic
drought. 83 Additionally, more than 38 percent of children younger than 5 are stunted and 23 percent
are underweight, which has long term implications on productivity. 83 It is estimated that each child
stunted by hunger and malnourished stands to lose 5-10 percent in lifetime earnings. 84 Therefore, the
long term impact of climate change-linked hunger in Uganda is expected to be enormous.
Key Sources: UNESCO, WFP and Relief Web