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Summary: This study on children in abject poverty in Uganda was undertaken to identify the problems hidden by the fact that the children in poverty are invisible; yet by the very nature of their situation, they are included among those that are classified as the poor in Uganda. This document outlines the objectives, methodologies and results of this study.The study had four related, specific objectives: to establish criteria for identifying and monitoring children in abject poverty in Uganda; to carry out a census and, on the basis of this, to develop a databank on children in abject poverty in three districts, Kampala, Kumi and Ntungamo; to conduct a case study to identify how children in abject poverty cope in school, how they progress in school and how education is perceived as the vehicle for breaking their cycle of poverty; and to develop a plan for targeting the out-of-school children in abject poverty within the framework of Uganda's Poverty Eradication Action Plan (PEAP).
The study found that:
- ill health and inadequate health services remain critical challenges for children in abject poverty
- over three quarters of those who fell sick sought some kind of modern treatment; very few resorted to traditional healers
- school-related costs have been the major obstacle for children in abject poverty to access education
- from the case study of Ttula, despite the perceived benefits of schooling for the poorest pupils, it was noted that attendance was affected by a number of factors, including: low participation by the parents in school visits; lack of teaching/learning materials; lack of basics such as uniforms, food (generalised), shoes, socks; and geographical pockets of crisis and adversities such as civil instability, floods, drought, etc.
The recommended intervention measures include but are not limited to:
- support a starting point for prioritisation of and targeting support to children in abject poverty in the national planning framework in PEAP
- develop a national equity promotion strategy focusing on the protection of vulnerable children and those in abject poverty
- develop a national capacity-development plan for supporting central, but more so local, governments to promote child-related equity and the protection of vulnerable children
- develop a national monitoring and evaluation system or structure for monitoring child poverty. This may include monitoring and evaluation initiatives by local council structures, civil society organisations (CSOs), donors and the private sector
- marshal stakeholder support (CSOs, local councils, communities, donors, etc.) to government towards the protection of children in abject poverty.
Owner: McNevin, W.; Ugandan Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development (MFPED); Ugandan Ministry of Education and Sports (MOES); et. al.pdf: http://www.crin.org/docs/poverty in uganda.pdf