Karamoja

In the northeastern region of Uganda, there is a land called Karamoja.  The region covers  an area of 27, 528 km.  The land has fertile soil and is  rich in minerals.  

The Karimojong are a pastoral people that live off of this land.  Their history of being a seminomadic people is marked by misfortune as disease, locust plagues and droughts have caused crop failures and famine.  

Cattle are the most valuable asset of the Karimojong, and the possession of cattle is regarded as necessary for both social esteem and personal satisfaction. Intertribal cattle raiding has historically been endemic among the Karimojong and neighboring pastoral peoples.  Agriculture is an increasing practice with fields of sorghum, maize, millet, groundnuts, and squash being planted and tended to.

The districts of Karamoja have the highest Human Poverty Indices (HPI), an average of 53.8 percent, compared to the national average of 37.5 percent.  Poverty is increasing and according to the Karimojong, the main factors responsible for  poverty include persistent poor harvest as a result of dry spells and droughts, animal death and lack of water.

The lack of clean drinking water is linked to the transmission of diseases such as cholera, diarrhea, dysentery, hepatitis A, thyphoid, polio and hepatitis E