Overall, and on average, only 28.6% of households in West Nile Sub-Region are food secure. This is generally the status quo throughout the sub-region, with the exception of Arua District.

The state of food security in West Nile, by district, and in order of the most food secure is as follows:

• 42.2% of households in Arua District are food secure.
• 36.5% of households in Yumbe District are food secure.
• 33.6% of households in Koboko District are food secure.
• 29.1% of households in Zombo District are food secure.
• 27.2% of households in Madi Okollo District are food secure.
• 24.0% of households in Marach District are food secure.
• 23.2% of households in Pakwach District are food secure.
• 22.2% of households in Terego District are food secure.
• 19.1% of households in Nebbi District are food secure.

With a population of over 3.3 million, it means thousands of people of West Nile have difficulties accessing sufficient food. They experience:

“Frequent and prolonged periods of insufficient food intake due to lack of money and other resources, forcing members of those households to skip meals or go an entire day without a meal.”

An “IPC Acute Food Insecurity and Acute Malnutrition Analysis, July 2024-June 2025,” published on reliefweb, gives qualitative insights into why low household food security in West Nile, profiling specifically the status quo in the districts of Koboko and Madi Okollo:

“Climate change, reduced humanitarian food aid, and the high concentration of refugees.”

The sate of food security in West Nile is consistent with the finding that 14.2% of persons aged 10 years and above in West Nile have “probable general psychological distress;” which is 2.2 percentage points higher than the national average, which is 12.0%.

Be that as it may, the people of West Nile have a life expectancy of 75 years, three years less than the highest regional life expectancy in the Country – 78 years in Teso Sub-Region.

Information herein is extracted from the most recent Uganda National Population and Household Census Report, by the Uganda Bureau of Statistics. A PDF copy of the report is available to download free here.

Uganda Bureau of Statistics measures food poverty using the Food Insecurity Experience Scale.

The state of food security in West Nile, indeed, justifies the joint intervention of the Canadian Physicians for Aid and Relief (CPAR) and CPAR Uganda, the Dr. Paul Hargrave Memorial Center Human Development Project that is intended to benefit disadvantaged communities of Greater Northern Uganda, of which Acholi is among.

To LEARN MORE about the work of CPAR Uganda and MAKE A DONATION click here.