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The number of children facing acute malnutrition in Uganda’s northeastern Karamoja region is expected to rise by 25% by October as El Niño-linked dry spells worsen food insecurity and undermine harvests, Save the Children, an international humanitarian organisation, has warned.
New figures from the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) show that the number of children suffering from acute malnutrition has increased from 122,100 to 154,200 since a previous assessment in June.
The latest estimate means an additional 32,100 children now require nutritional support, including about 38,800 children who are suffering or are expected to suffer severe acute malnutrition, the most serious form requiring urgent treatment.
Save the Children’s Acting Country Director in Uganda, Martha Ddambya, said the deteriorating situation was already evident in communities and health facilities across Karamoja.
“Our teams in Karamoja are seeing the impact of this crisis every day. Families tell us they have less food to put on the table, harvests have been poor, and more children are arriving at health facilities malnourished and in need of urgent support,” Ddambya said.
“For parents, there is nothing more frightening than watching a child go hungry and not knowing where the next meal will come from.”
She said the sharp increase in child malnutrition should serve as a warning that the crisis was worsening.
“The sharp rise in child malnutrition should be a warning that the situation is deteriorating and that thousands more children are at risk unless action is taken now,” she said.
Karamoja, home to about 1.6 million people, has been hit by poor rainfall, crop failures and prolonged drought.
The World Food Programme said a recent assessment found that more than 600,000 people in the region were food insecure after a failed rainy season, with some households surviving on a single meal a day.
The crisis has also been compounded by the region’s longstanding vulnerability to drought, poverty and food insecurity.
WFP says Karamoja is experiencing one of its most severe dry spells in years, with prolonged drought, widespread crop failure and rising food prices pushing about 620,000 people into crisis-level hunger.
Save the Children said the dry conditions have reduced agricultural output and contributed to localised crop failures and plant stress.
Ddambya said the organisation was working with the Ugandan Government and local communities to provide treatment and strengthen household resilience, but warned that the scale of need was increasing.
“Save the Children is working, in coordination with the Government of Uganda, alongside communities in Karamoja to help children access treatment, improve nutrition, and support families to grow food and earn an income, but the scale of need is growing,” she said.
“There is critical need for multisectoral support in anticipation of and response to the crisis affecting the Karamoja region and surrounding areas.”
The organisation is supporting early identification and referral of malnutrition cases, strengthening the capacity of health workers in treatment centres and helping communities use locally available resources to address malnutrition.
WFP is also providing food and nutrition assistance in the region, including cash support for vulnerable households, treatment for acute malnutrition and school meals. The agency says the Government of Uganda has launched a six-month drought response targeting 300,000 households across Karamoja.
Ddambya called for increased funding to prevent the crisis from worsening.
“We urgently need increased funding to reach vulnerable children before conditions worsen further, and we need a stronger response to the impacts of El Niño and recurring drought,” she said.
“Investing now will save lives, protect children’s health, and help families withstand the climate shocks that are becoming an increasingly harsh reality across the region.”
