Realization of the right to adequate food and the nutritional status of land evictees: a case for mothers/caregivers and their children in rural Central Uganda

Aziiza Nahalomo,Maritha Marais,Wenche Barth Eide,Archileo Kaaya,Edward Wamala,Joyce Kikafunda,Peter Milton Rukundo,Margaret Kabahenda,Per Ole Iversen

doi:10.1186/s12914-018-0162-6

Abstract

BackgroundIn developing countries like Uganda, the human right to adequate food (RtAF) is inextricably linked to access to land for households to feed themselves directly through production or means for its procurement. Whether RtAF is enjoyed among Ugandan land evictees, is unknown. We therefore explored this among land evictees (rights-holders) in Wakiso and Mpigi districts in rural Central Uganda. We assessed food accessibility and related coping strategies, diet quality and nutritional status of children 6–59 months old, and their caregivers. Effectiveness of the complaint and redress mechanisms in addressing RtAF violations was also explored.MethodsIn this cross-sectional study, quantitative data was collected using a structured questionnaire, with food security and nutritional assessment methods from a total of 215 land evictees including 187 children aged 6–59 months. Qualitative data was collected by reviewing selected national and international documents on the RtAF and key informant interviews with 15 purposively sampled duty-bearers. These included individuals or representatives of the Uganda Human Rights Commission, Resident District Commissioner, Sub-county Chiefs, and local Council leaders.ResultsWe found that 78% of land evictees had insufficient access to food while 69.4% had consumed a less diversified diet. A majority of evictees (85.2%) relied on borrowing food or help from others to cope with food shortages. Of the 187 children assessed, 9.6% were wasted, 18.2% were underweight and 34.2% were stunted. Small, but significant associations, were found between food accessibility, diet quality, food insecurity coping strategies; and the nutritional status of evictees. We observed that administrative, quasi-judicial and judicial mechanisms to provide adequate legal remedies regarding violations of the RtAF among evictees in Uganda are in place, but not effective in doing so.ConclusionLand eviction without adequate legal remedies is a contributor to food insecurity and undernutrition in rural Central Uganda. It is essential that the Government strengthens and enforces the policy and legal environment to ensure adequate and timely compensation of evictees in order to reduce their vulnerability to food insecurity.

Highlights

In developing countries like Uganda, the human right to adequate food (RtAF) is inextricably linked to access to land for households to feed themselves directly through production or means for its procurement
The UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) interprets, through its General Comment No 12 (GC12) on the Right to adequate food, this provision to mean that the RtAF is realized “when every man, woman and child, alone or in the community with others, have physical and economic access at all times to adequate food or means for its procurement” [2], all citizens are referred to as rights-holders under international human rights law to which Uganda is a party
The Voluntary Guidelines to support the progressive realization of the RtAF in the context of national food security (VGRtAF or “Right to Food Guidelines”) urges State agencies as primary duty bearers to provide legal remedies to individual whose right to adequate food has been violated [3]

Summary

Introduction

In developing countries like Uganda, the human right to adequate food (RtAF) is inextricably linked to access to land for households to feed themselves directly through production or means for its procurement. The UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) interprets, through its General Comment No 12 (GC12) on the Right to adequate food, this provision to mean that the RtAF is realized “when every man, woman and child, alone or in the community with others, have physical and economic access at all times to adequate food or means for its procurement” [2], all citizens are referred to as rights-holders under international human rights law to which Uganda is a party. Uganda faces similar challenges as other developing countries; the realization of the RtAF for some vulnerable communities in Uganda is further threatened by inadequate access to land, land tenure systems that do not favour the poor, and the increasing land evictions [5,6,7]

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