In Uganda: Low access to essential goods, high food insecurity, with slightly improved conditions among the poorest

This article demonstrates conditions in Uganda regarding the country’s access to essential goods and food insecurity.

Read the full brief and access the microdata of the latest round (R9) to explore more socio-economic conditions

Access to essential goods

Between June to August 2022, respondents were asked if they or any other household member(s) managed to access essential goods when needed during the last seven days. Those who had access were also asked if they managed to access the desired amounts. Finding shows that Ugandan households have been facing significant difficulties in accessing essential goods such as cooking oil, fuel, beef, bread, and rice.

Lack of money and increased prices were the key reasons behind low access.

Expectedly, the poorest respondents experience much worse access to essential products compared to those who are richer. For example, almost every second household from the poorest pre-COVID-19 bottom consumption quintile was not able to access eggs compared to every seventh household among the most affluent top quintile.

The lack of access to essential goods prompts the team to also look at the level of food security in Uganda:

Food Security

Food insecurity in Uganda remains stubbornly high. During Round 9 of the survey conducted in August 2022, food insecurity measured by moderate and severe food insecurity indexes were at very high levels of 48 and 11 percent respectively. This is only slightly lower compared to Round 8 (June/July 2022) and Round 7 (October/November 2021).

Region-wide, the highest levels of food insecurity were observed in the poorest Eastern and Northern regions.

On a positive note, a slight decline in food insecurity in the most recent round (Round 9 - August 2022) was more pronounced among the poorest population measured by pre-COVID-19 consumption quintiles and among the rural residents. Indeed, the share of the severely food insecure population declined from 20 to 15 percent among the poorest bottom quintile and remained unchanged among the two richest quintiles.

The same positive tendency was observed in moderate food insecurity and may be related to harvesting that happened in July/August.

Since 2020, the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) has been collecting data for the Uganda High-Frequency Phone Survey (UHFPS). The survey was initially used to track the socioeconomic impacts of COVID-19 on the national population, but now covers a wider scope to measure the impacts of other shocks such as extreme weather events, the Russia-Ukraine war, Ebola Virus Disease outbreak and more.

The survey recontacts households from the Uganda National Panel Survey (UNPS) 2019/20 that had phone numbers for at least one household member or a reference individual. The first round of the survey was conducted in June 2020. The latest, ninth round was conducted in August 2022 more than two years after the pandemic started.

Financing for data collection has also been provided by the World Bank, the Global Financing Facility, and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The World Bank has also provided technical assistance.

•  Number of households interviewed for Round 9: 1871
• Time when the Round 9 survey is conducted: August 2022

Read the full brief and access the microdata of the latest round (R9) to explore more socio-economic conditions.