BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The current situation for children in Uganda
Children - the majority of Uganda’s population- continue to suffer
Children comprise up to 56% of Uganda’s population. By 2010, Uganda had a population of 33 million
people, including about 19 million children (UNICEF Uganda statistics, 2009). The living conditions for
this important group of the Ugandan society are still anything but desirable. Children continue to live in
conditions characterized by inadequate access to health services, biting poverty in homes, exploitation,
and violence. The given living conditions for children in Uganda undermine the four cardinal rights of a
child to survival, development, protection and participation.
Two millions children are orphaned
According to UNICEF, as of 2009, there were approximately 2.7 million orphans in Uganda of which 1.2
million were orphaned by AIDS. The situation has been exacerbated by the prevalence of preventable
diseases such as malaria and tuberculosis and conflicts in the country. The protection and care of these
vulnerable children in Uganda is still not assured. Many of the orphaned children are forced to live on
the streets and/or under exploitative conditions of labour, physical, emotional and sexual abuse. A lot of
them live in child-headed households and are forced to fend for themselves and their siblings. Others
are infected with HIV either through mother-to-child- transmission or through defilement.
One in seven children dies before the age of five due to insufficient health care
According to the 2010 Millennium Development Report for Uganda, 135 children die in every 1000 live
births. In other words, one in seven children will die before it reaches the age of five years.
Up to 90% of our children grow up in poverty with one in every five suffering from chronic hunger.
According to the 2010 United Nations Development Programme UNDP Uganda Report, 20% of children
are underweight. The issue of children affected and infected with HIV/AIDS projects an equally grim
picture; of the estimated 50,000 children in need of this treatment, only about 13,000 children are
receiving this essential intervention, while of the 200 antiretroviral treatment sites approved by the
Ministry of Health, only 30 provide paediatric services.
Dwindling quality in education and dropout rates of two thirds at primary level
In the area of education, despite a net enrolment rate of 97.1% at primary education level, up to 67.6%
of these children who enrol, drop out before they complete primary seven, according to the 2010 UNDP
Human Development Index. Also UNICEF’S statistics on the State of the world’s children 2011 show that
the primary school enrolment rate lies at 96% for boys and 98% for girls, but the survival rate to last the
primary grade is just 32%. The secondary enrolment ratio remains low at 22% for boys and 21% for girls.
ANPPCAN Uganda Chapter
Plot 1 Kira Road
P.O.Box 24640
Kampala, Uganda
Tel: +256 414 254 550
Fax: +256 414 344 648
The situation is worsened by a dwindling quality in education. A school inspection system is lacking,
which has accelerated teacher absenteeism in rural schools, worsened class grades and disparities in
national exam performance. There is also a high teacher-pupils ratio standing at 129 to a teacher in
some parts of the country (Primary School Absenteeism in Iganga District of Uganda, ANPPCAN 2010).
This situation affects children and their future; Children out of school are likely to end up on the streets,
in exploitative situations, and caught in poverty. They are deprived of their right to quality education
and development, to create choices and opportunities and reduce the burdens of poverty and diseases.
Alarming number of children face violence in schools
Corporal punishment is still at large in schools, with 81% of school children still beaten despite a
directive from the government banning the practice, according to the 2011 baseline survey conducted
by ANPPCAN. Corporal punishment has remained entrenched in society mostly because it is regarded as
a socially acceptable form of discipline and therefore not punishment per se. Violence against children in
general remains at large because a number of children still cannot identify many forms of violence
meted out to them, and in cases where they recognized the abuse, were too afraid to report, mostly
because the people they are supposed to report to; parents and teachers are the very perpetrators of
the practise. The forms of violence include sexual violence, physical violence like beating, emotional and
mental violence like watching fellow children punished and bullying.
Literacy and Numeracy Levels Still Low among Uganda’s Children
The explosion in enrolment in school does not reflect the quality of education, which has been revealed
to be severely lacking. According to a report (Uwezo 2010, Are Our Children Really Learning? Annual
Learning Assessment Report) conducted in 3 East African countries (Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania)
children are completing primary school with limited numeracy and literacy levels. In Uganda, only 4% of
pupils in primary 3 who completed the English test were able to read a primary 2 level story with ease.
The report further reveals that 15% of Primary 7 pupils could not do a sum set at primary 2 level.
Children from poorer families with access to solely public education performed worst and also had the
highest drop-out rate.
More children defiled each year
In the area of crimes against children, the magnitude of child abuse has remained undesirably high and
threatens the children’s right to survival. According to the Ugandan Annual Crime and Traffic/Road
Safety Report 2010; 7,564 cases of defilement were reported in 2010 presenting a 2.7% increase from
the 7,360 cases reported in 2009. These high cases of sexual abuse have led to more children
contracting HIV/AIDS, and other Sexually Transmitted Diseases, increased child pregnancies, early
marriages and high school dropout rates. The rise in sexual abuse has however been faced with low
prosecution rates denying thousands of children access to justice. For instance, out of the defilement
cases reported to the police in 2010, only 3,401 (45%) were taken to court, leaving a total of 4163 (55%)
cases either dropped or not followed up.
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Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children on the Rise
A 2011 study conducted by Uganda Youth Development Link estimates that the number of children
affected by commercial sexual exploitation in Uganda has increased from 12,000 to about 18,000
between 2004 and 2011, with more girls affected by the practice. The main facilitator of the practice has
been identified as trafficking with the majority of children falling in the 14-17 age bracket. Parental
neglect was also identified as an enabler of this exploitation given that 80% of the children involved in
the practice were staying alone before they go into it. In addition, most of the children sexually abused
come from poor rural areas and are trafficked to urban areas.
Child Neglect remains the biggest form of abuse
Child neglect, meaning the omission of actions necessary for the wellbeing and physical and
psychological development of a minor, remains the biggest form of child abuse. According to the
Ugandan Annual Crime and Traffic/Road Safety Report 2010, out of all child related cases reported,
9,293 were cases of child neglect, the highest incidence of any of the forms of child abuse. Incidences of
child neglect could be in the form of failure of parents to meet nutritional, health, educational needs
and leaving a child unsupervised for long periods of time.
More than one in three children is caught up in child labour
According to UNICEF’S statistics on the State of the World’s Children 2011, more than one in three
children 5 to 14 years old (36%), are involved in child labour. The kind of work these children are forced
to do is never suitable for their age, working conditions and arrangements are inacceptable, health and
safety standards are lacking. Many children get physically and/or sexually abused, are completely
isolated from the family and exposed to dangerous drugs. As a consequence, child labour leads to
irreversible injuries and health problems, trauma and psychological stress, and sometimes even to
death.
Children still get kidnapped, murdered, trafficked and sacrificed
Kidnapping, child murdering, and child sacrifice remain widespread in Uganda. According to the
Ugandan Annual Crime and Traffic/Road Safety Report 2010, 301 children got kidnapped, 46 murdered,
and 9 sacrificed in 2010. All these children get deprived of their right to life and survival. Experts
attribute these crimes to poverty and the inability by parents to take care of the children. Effective
measures, both preventive and corrective, to protect children from all these forms of violence and
mistreatment and direct support for vulnerable and poor households would be needed.
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Press Contact:
Timothy Opobo
Program Coordinator Research, Information and Policy Advocacy
Tel: +256 414 254550, 0392 754550/552
Mob: +256 700 474 078
Fax: +256 414 344 648
Email: [email protected]
Note to the editor:
ANPPCAN, the African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect, is a
Pan-African organization committed to addressing the problem of child abuse and neglect and
promoting the rights of children in Africa. With this mandate, the organization was established in
Uganda in 1992 and registered in 1995. ANPPCAN Uganda Chapter protects and supports children from
all forms of maltreatment by providing psychological support, facilitating access to justice, sensitizing
and training on child protection issues, empowering children for self protection, researching and
advocating for child friendly policies. www.anppcanug.org
"PROTECTING THE CHILDREN, SECURING THE FUTURE"
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