UNDP Uganda has been publishing the Uganda National Human Development Report (NHDR) annually since 2000.

 

In its seventh series, the 2007 NHDR whose theme is “Rediscovering Agriculture for Human development,” brings into focus the importance of agriculture to Uganda’s economy.

 

As part of an effort to share the report with local leaders and also get information that is particular to the regions, UNDP decided to launch it in every region in the country so that it can be able to share it with district local government leaders and civil society organisations which work on the ground.

 

The regional dissemination exercise began in June 2008, in Kabarole for Western region; it moved to Rakai in July for central region and in August covered Moroto for the North Eastern and Kumi for Eastern Uganda.

 

The dissemination of the NHDR has also been coupled with the dissemination of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) progress report for the year 2007, which highlights Uganda’s performance and progress in the MDGs. 

 

We are now embarking on the last dissemination exercise for Northern region which will be held in Arua District on the 23rd September.  

For over 20 years, Northern Uganda has suffered from upheaval, most of it caused by Joseph Kony’s Lord Resistance Army (LRA). This upheaval has over the years had ripple effects on all the other parts of the region’s economy.

 

As noted in the National Human Development Report (NHDR), the region needs special attention. Particularly since relative peace has returned to the area as the warring parties try to negotiate a peace deal.

 

According to 2007 NHDR, Northern Uganda’s Human Development Index (HDI- which measures achievement in human development) was the lowest, at 0.499 with districts in the region like Gulu, Amuru, Kitgum and Pader scoring lowest on the HDI table.

 

 

This low performance is attributed to the insurgency which forced people to relocate to safe areas which have fewer opportunities to participate in economically productive activities. These same districts had poor enrolment ratios and high infant mortality rates.

 

The Human Poverty Index (HPI- measures deprivations in human development i.e. long and healthy life, knowledge and a decent standard of living).

 

The Northern region registered a high HPI of 30.54% which means that it is worse off than many other areas in terms of welfare. The region also shows the lowest probability of one living up to 40 years, has the highest level of illiteracy and the highest percentage of children who are underweight.

 

The NHDR recommends special attention for Northern Uganda, which includes;

Ø       Putting a deliberate focus on stimulating production and marketing in the North in order to move agriculture from being largely subsistence to medium scale farming which can benefit larger communities.

Ø       The report notes that this requires sensitisation and extension of advice to farmers on effective land use for the rehabilitation of all the crop sectors. The region’s agro-climatic environment is suitable for the production of edible oils such as sunflower and groundnuts.

Ø       Key institutions like National Planning Authority and NAADs should also be supported to undertake a value chain analysis in the region to revitalise the local communities.

 

The MDGs are eight international development goals that the United Nations member states agreed to achieve by 2015. The goals are;

Goal 1: The eradication of extreme poverty and hunger

Goal 2: Achieve universal primary education

Goal 3: Promote gender equality and empower women

Goal 4: Reduce child mortality

Goal 5: Improving maternal health

Goal 6: Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other infectious diseases

Goal 7: Ensure environmental sustainability

Goal 8: Develop a global partnership for development

 

Northern Uganda is lagging behind most regions in attainment of the MDGs.

Ø       Goal 1 – it maintains the highest poverty incidence of 61%

Ø       Goal 2 – its education remains heavily reliant on humanitarian agencies including UNICEF, WFP and other NGOs. Schools in the region have been destroyed while both students and teachers have moved to more secure areas, hence a shortage of both. The students are also traumatised and yet the curriculums are not designed to help their situation.

Ø       The region also lags behind on goal 4 (Reduce Child Mortality) and goal 5 (Improve maternal Health) which are still a challenge for the rest of the country.

Ø       Environmental sustainability (goal 7) is also still a challenge for the region whose environment has been destroyed due to insecurity.

Ø       The HIV/AIDS infection rate (goal 6) continues to go up because of the situation in the area.

 

There is hence a need to pursue more funding/financing by both the government and the development partners to help the northern region achieve development and attain the MDGs through programmes such as PRDP, PMA, NAADS and PFA among others.