This study explored the use of participatory epidemiology (PE) to estimate the annual incidences of human diseases in Karamoja, Uganda, with emphasis on diseases associated with water. Adapted PE methods were used successfully to estimate disease incidences in young children and adults, and revealed a rich knowledge on the clinical signs and causes of diseases. The report concludes that PE could be useful for overcoming some of the spatial limitations of the health surveillance system in Karamoja, and the temporal limitations of bi-annual food security and nutrition assessments.

In July 2022 the Ugandan media reported that 900 people had died of hunger or hunger-related diseases in the Karamoja sub-region since February 2022, and that 8 out of 10 households had limited or no food.i

In mid-2020, the Karamoja Resilience Support Unit (KRSU) conducted a rapid assessment that described the impact of COVID-19 containment measures on rural livelihoods in Karamoja (Arasio et al. 20201). The assessment also forecast how disease restrictions would affect livelihoods over the following six to eight months (into early 2021). The initial assessment examined household wellbeing during COVID-19 relative to a normal (good) and bad (drought) year in Karamoja’s three main livelihood zones, represented by Amudat District (predominantly pastoralist but with some emerging crop production), Moroto District (predominantly agropastoralist), and Abim District (with high dependence on crop production, but also using livestock).

The main objective of the 2011 UDHS was to obtain current statistical data on the Ugandan population’s demographic characteristics, family planning efforts, maternal mortality, and infant and child mortality. Another objective was to collect information on health care services and activities, antenatal, delivery, and postnatal care, children’s immunisations, and management of childhood diseases. In addition, the survey was designed to evaluate the nutritional status of mothers and children, to measure the prevalence of anaemia among women and children, to assess the level of knowledge about HIV and AIDS among men and women, and to determine the extent of interpersonal violence.