Like most other African countries, poverty remains the greatest challenge facing the people of Uganda. Poverty has been defined not only as lack of incomes but also as the inability to meet basic and social needs, the feeling of powerlessness to break out of the cycle of poverty, and insecurity of persons and property. In 1992 poverty rates in Uganda stood at 56% but declined to 44% in 1997, 34% in 1999/2000, then rose to 38% in 2002/2003 before falling again to 31% in 2005/2006.

The population in Uganda is predominantly rural and agricultural based. There are significant regional disparities in poverty levels, with the highest incidence in the north of the country. In these regions, long affected by conflict, all the MDG indicators fare very poorly, although the ongoing peace talks between the Government and the LRA rebels bring promises of peace and sustainable development for Northern Uganda at last.

The Government of Uganda has tried to address these challenges through a comprehensive national poverty reduction strategy, the Poverty Eradication Action Plan (PEAP), a fundamental instrument which acts as the overarching framework for national development. The PEAP sets an ambitious target of reducing the proportion of the population living in absolute poverty from 44% in 1997 to below 10% by 2017. This is well above the MDG 1 Target of halving the proportion of people living below the poverty line in 1990 by 2015.

UNDP Uganda actively supports government efforts to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) through the PEAP, and the Poverty Reduction programme contributes to two goals (also known as pillars) of the PEAP, namely to:

• improve economic management
• enhance production, competitiveness and incomes

Furthermore, the programme supports interventions which seek to tackle local poverty directly through the promotion of microfinance and small and medium scale enterprise (SME) development. Priorities in this area include strengthening the institutional capacity to deliver business development services and enabling the improvement of SME policies and regulations.

Additionally, UNDP has identified sustainable utilization and conservation of both energy and environment as an important avenue to raise incomes, food security and the welfare of households and communities in general. We support innovative pilot projects which promote sustainable human development, such as those which blend income generation with energy and environmental conservation.

Beyond pilot projects, the Poverty Reduction Programme also works to integrate energy and environmental concerns into planning processes countrywide; to ensure that the poor have access to modern and affordable energy services; and to strengthen the national disaster response. This last aspect bears particular resonance as Uganda is faced with the challenge of responding to the recent floods which affected the northern regions.

Overall, the Poverty Reduction Programme strives to achieve the following outcomes:

• create a more conducive environment for private sector development
• develop strategies for sustainable land management in rangelands, and incorporate environmental concerns into District Development Plans

MYFF Strategic Goal
Goal 1: Achieving the MDGs and reducing human poverty

Service lines
1.5 Private sector development

MYFF Strategic Goal
Goal 3: Energy and Environment for sustainable development

Service lines
3.4. Sustainable land management to combat desertification and land degradation

Wilson Kwamya
Assistant Resident Representative/
Head of Poverty Reduction Unit
wilson.kwamya@undp.org

Justin Ecaat                                            Environment Specialist
justin.ecaat@undp.org

Gloria Atuheirwe                                     Programme Analyst
gloria.atuheirwe@undp.org

Celia Namyalo                                         Programme  Assistant
celia.namyalo@undp.org

Jenesta Atuhaire                                    Programme Assistant
jenesta.atuhaire@undp.org