Households In Uganda Research Articles

Impact of Urban Planning on Household Poverty Reduction in Uganda: A Review

The study analyzed the impact of urban planning on reducing household poverty in Uganda. It found that both negative and positive factors significantly influence household poverty. The study also identified five key factors that contribute to household poverty: social services, research and development, employment, and investment. The findings suggest that urban planners should align their policies with government policies when allocating resources to reduce poverty caused by unplanned urbanization. The study recommends that urban planners work to improve the quality of life for households in Uganda. Keywords: Household poverty, urban population growth, urban planning, Urban Sprawl, Government intervention

How to cope with a refugee population? Evidence from Uganda

Sub-Saharan Africa hosts a large proportion of the world’s refugees, raising concerns about the consequences on host countries. Uganda is the largest refugee-hosting country in Africa and is praised for its progressive refugee policy. We analyze the effects of hosting refugees on material welfare in Uganda, relying on longitudinal data and an instrumental variable approach. Our results indicate that Ugandan households benefit from living close to refugee settlements. In contrast to the existing literature, those initially involved in subsistence agriculture benefit the most. The effect seems to be driven by the few households able to move from subsistence agriculture to commercial farming and to some extent, to wage employment.

Drivers of Resistance in Uganda and Malawi (DRUM): a protocol for the evaluation of One-Health drivers of Extended Spectrum Beta Lactamase (ESBL) resistance in Low-Middle Income Countries (LMICs).

In sub-Saharan Africa (sSA), there is high morbidity and mortality from severe bacterial infection and this is compounded by antimicrobial resistance, in particular, resistance to 3rd-generation cephalosporins. This resistance is typically mediated by extended-spectrum beta lactamases (ESBLs). To interrupt ESBL transmission it will be important to investigate how human behaviour, water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) practices, environmental contamination, and antibiotic usage in both urban and rural settings interact to contribute to transmission of ESBL E. coli and ESBL K. pneumoniae between humans, animals, and the environment. Here we present the protocol for the Drivers of Resistance in Uganda and Malawi (DRUM) Consortium, in which we will collect demographic, geospatial, clinical, animal husbandry and WASH data from a total of 400 households in Uganda and Malawi. Longitudinal human, animal and environmental sampling at each household will be used to isolate ESBL E. coli and ESBL K. pneumoniae. This will be complimented by a Risks, Attitudes, Norms, Abilities and Self-Regulation (RANAS) survey and structured observations to understand the contextual and psychosocial drivers of regional WASH practices. Bacterial isolates and plate sweeps will be further characterised using a mixture of short-,long-read and metagenomic whole-genome sequencing. These datasets will be integrated into agent-based models to describe the transmission of EBSL resistance in Uganda and Malawi and allow us to inform the design of interventions for interrupting transmission of ESBL-bacteria.

MR1-restricted T cell clonotypes are associated with resistance to Mycobacterium tuberculosisinfection

Abstract T-cells are a critical facet of the adaptive immune system and have been shown in both human and animal studies to be essential for control of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) infection. T-cells recognize foreign antigens presented by infected cells via a unique T-cell receptor (TCR). Understanding the specific TCRs that mediate recognition and clearance of Mtb-infected cells is essential to inform vaccine design. We recently described a cohort of Ugandan household contacts of tuberculosis cases that appear to ‘resist’ Mtb infection (RSTRs) and showed that these individuals harbor IFN-γ independent T-cell responses to Mtb peptide antigens. The role of unconventional T-cells that recognize non-peptide antigens, such as gd T-cells, CD1-restricted and MR1-restricted T-cells (MR1T), in “resistance” is unknown. In this study, we aimed to characterize the frequencies, functional programs, and repertoire of unconventional T-cells in RSTRs in comparison with latently infected (LTBI) controls. We used multi-parameter flow cytometry, single cell RNA and TCR sequencing and immunosequencing to address these gaps. We observed a 1.65-fold increase in frequency of circulating MR1T cells among RSTRs in comparison with LTBI (p=0.03). Single-cell RNA-sequencing of 18,251 sorted MR1T cells revealed 5,150 clonotypes expressing a common transcriptional program, the majority of which were private. Immunosequencing of the TCR-α/d repertoire revealed several TCRα clonotypes that were expanded in RSTRs (p <0.01), including at least two MR1T clonotypes. Overall, our data reveal unexpected donor-specific diversity in the TCR repertoire of human MR1T cells as well as associations between MR1 clonotypes and ‘resistance’ to Mtb infection. This work was supported by grants from the NIH (R01-AI124348 to Boom, Stein, and Hawn; R01-AI125189 and R01-AI146072 to Seshadri) and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (OPP1151836 and OPP1109001 to Hawn and GH-VAP-IS-ID5 to Seshadri).

Determinants of households' flood risk coping strategies in a high exposure system of the Manafwa catchment and Lake Kyoga Basin

Abstract The impact of floods on households in Uganda is becoming increasingly severe. It is often assumed that people who reside in a riverine area have adapted to flood pulses. However, in most cases, household-level risk reduction strategies are inadequate for ensuring a livelihood resilient to floods. The objective of this study was to investigate the determinants of households' decisions on coping strategies in the Manafwa catchment, Eastern Uganda. The study was based on a field survey of 210 households supplemented with focused group discussions (6) and key informant interviews (4) conducted in the Butaleja district in March 2019. The study used the protection motivation theory framework and applied the multivariate probit model. The most common short-term coping strategy was building temporary embankments (37%), whereas afforestation (44%) was the most common long-term solution deployed. The determinants that consistently and significantly influenced the choice of coping strategies adopted were: family size, number of adult males in the family, location of the house within the floodplain and time of residence in the affected area (P > 0.05). For policy purposes, this study recommends that the relevant stakeholder interventions should consider these determinants, in order to enhance the adaptive capacity of rural households to flooding.

Assessing the crop productivity and household welfare effects of adopting certified seeds of improved cassava varieties in Uganda

ABSTRACT This article identifies the determinants, crop productivity, and household welfare impacts of adopting certified seeds of improved cassava varieties (c-ICVs) in Uganda. The determinants were identified using the two-part model while the crop productivity and household welfare impacts were assessed using the endogenous switching regression model. The data came from 609 farm households in Uganda’s three major cassava-growing regions (Eastern, Northern, and mid-Western). The results showed that adopters of c-ICVs experienced a considerable increase in productivity (stem and root yields) and improvement in welfare outcomes (cash income and consumption expenditure). The results provide evidence of the effectiveness of the country’s seed certification and genetic improvement efforts over recent years and justify increased investments in genetic improvement and seed certification.

Effects of Liming on Acid Ferrasols for Sustainable Crop Production in Uganda – A Review

Ferralsols are the predominant soil type covering about 70% of the total land area of Uganda; they are mostly found in the Central and Western regions of the country. Ferralsols are highly weathered, acidic and have inherently low nutrient reserves. Degradation of these soils has led to reduced agricultural production and productivity. Despite the increased human population and the importance of Agriculture to the majority of the households in Uganda, little or no research has been carried out on Acid Ferralsols to improve food security and sustain livelihoods. Besides, the country’s research programs have not prioritized the use and management of soil fertility management strategies such as liming. Crop yields on these soils are often far less than those on research stations. This review paper focuses on the extent and effects, causes, challenges and opportunities associated with liming Acid Ferralsols and the effects on soil properties and crop yield. Many studies have shown that detrimental effects of acid soils can be ameliorated through liming, thus improving on the physio-chemical properties to improve crop production and yield. More research is anticipated to develop lime requirements for acid Ferralsols so as to meet the growing food demand in Uganda.

Climatic shocks and multidimensional energy poverty in Ugandan households: does women empowerment play a moderating role?

ABSTRACT This study examines the effect of climatic shock and women empowerment on multidimensional energy poverty using panel data from Uganda National Panel Surveys from 2013/14–2019/20, complemented by the World Bank African Rainfall Climatology version 2 (ARC2) database. We find that climatic shocks increase energy poverty. However, there is great potential in energy poverty alleviation when women are more empowered in relation to men, but it is even greater when both genders are empowered in the same household amidst climatic shocks. Combating the impacts of drought, floods, landslides, and irregular rainfall while enhancing women's economic empowerment avenues should be a priority on the policy agenda for multidimensional energy poverty alleviation in Uganda.Highlights Energy poverty is assessed using a multidimensional approach. Four waves of the Uganda National panel survey and weather data were used Climatic shocks increase energy poverty. Women empowerment reduces energy poverty amidst climatic shocks, more so when both genders are empowered in the same household.

Do Biomass Technology Innovations Improve Subjective Well-Being? Traditional versus Improved Cookstoves in Uganda

This study investigates the dark side of biomass technology innovations on households’ subjective well-being (SWB) in Uganda. The dark side of biomass technology innovations concerns households moving away from the intangible cultural cooking heritages that they have preserved for a long time. These intangible cultural cooking heritages are important to understand as they contribute to policy decisions on sustainable society transformation (sustainability transitions) in the clean cooking energy sector. This study adds to the scarce literature on innovation for well-being and innovation for transformative change, addressing grand societal challenges while considering the well-being of technology users. Principal component analysis was used to generate the subjective well-being variable from the captured traditional household cooking considerations, perceptions, and practices. Linear regression was used to analyze the effect of improved cookstoves (ICSs) and other factors on the subjective well-being of households in Uganda. The results show that using ICSs moves Ugandan households away from traditional ways of cooking, which reduces the well-being they attach to the intangible cultural heritage of traditional cooking. Thus, innovators, entrepreneurs and promoters of clean cooking technologies should consider the well-being of users along with the benefits of bioenergy innovation to accelerate society transformation (sustainability transitions) in Uganda.

The role of Non-Governmental organisations in enhancing household poverty reduction in Uganda: a review of literature

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to discuss the contribution of Non-Governmental Organisations in enhancing poverty reduction among households in Uganda by looking at the relationship between NGO Activities and poverty reduction in Uganda as well as the contribution of NGO activities and poverty reduction in Uganda.
 Methodology: The study adopted a literature review of available data on Uganda, the region and other parts of the world regarding the link between Non-governmental organisations and household poverty reduction. The sources consulted include academic manuscripts, journals, peer-reviewed books, policy documents, annual reports as well as statistical papers.
 Findings: Results suggest a positive relationship between microfinance and poverty while most studies confirm that microfinance has a potential outcome on reducing poverty. More, results indicate NGOs’ support to food security and household poverty reduction as well as complex community perception of NGOs activities in poverty reduction, promotion of education and training, health, environmental conservation, and protection against child abuse.
 Conclusion and recommendations: NGOs might be doing a wonderful service to community members in various countries in the name of poverty reduction, not much of their achievements have been documented. It was even more paramount that, Uganda, with many NGOs working along poverty reduction strategies have their achievements studied, documented and widely shared. Thus, the government provides a more conducive working environment for the NGOs to be able to function and operate with less fear from the censorship of state organs; and, an amicable working relationship be forged between government and the NGOs given that the two are partners in community development.
 Unique contribution to policy and/or practice: This review on the contribution of NGOs to household poverty reduction is essential to national and local policy makers on facilitating the stakeholders to appreciate the fundamental role played by non-state actors in community transformation.

Increased mineral fertilizer use on maize can improve both household food security and regional food production in East Africa

CONTEXTDespite recent improvements in living standards, a substantial proportion of farm households in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is food insecure, and increasing crop productivity could help address this problem. OBJECTIVEWe estimated the effect of increasing maize yields with mineral fertilizer on household food security and on regional and national maize supply in two East African countries - Uganda and Tanzania. METHODSWe estimated maize yield response to nitrogen (N) fertilization with a machine learning model trained on 15,952 observations of maize responses to fertilizer across SSA. Together with spatial price data, we used this model to quantify the profit-maximizing N fertilizer input for a nationally-representative sample of 4188 agricultural households in the two countries. We computed a food availability indicator for all households. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONSThe mean profit-maximizing N input was 82 kg/ha in Tanzania, but it was much lower in Uganda (24 kg/ha) mostly because of less favorable prices. The profit-maximizing N input was above the reported N input for 95% of the households in Tanzania and for 43% of the households in Uganda. It was predicted to increase the food availability ratio of food insecure maize growers by 95% in Tanzania, and by 25% in Uganda. The administrative regions where maize supply could increase most were not the same as the regions where the increase in household-level food security was largest. With increased fertilization, food insecure maize growing households (35% in Tanzania and 42% in Uganda) could only contribute about 20% of the overall increase in maize supply, whereas the 20 to 30% food secure households that have a larger area planted with maize could contribute >60%. SIGNIFICANCEOur study makes two key contributions: i) a substantial increase in national maize supply is more likely to come from already food secure households with relatively large farms, while food insecure households with small farms may nevertheless increase their household-level food security through maize intensification, and ii) high potential areas to increase maize domestic production do not necessarily match with areas where there is immediate scope to improve household-level food security.

Determinants of uptake of biofortified crop varieties by smallholder farmers in Uganda

Hunger and malnutrition can be said to be one of the important global problems that have recently been exacerbated by climate change and environmental degradation. Meanwhile, an estimated two billion people suffer from micronutrient malnutrition, mostly due to low intake of vitamins and minerals such as iron and zinc. Biofortification, an agricultural technology that can increase the micronutrient content of staples, may confer large benefits to rural families and poor children with limited access to expensive high-quality foods. Possible pathways include own-consumption when directly consumed, the income pathway when they are sold and/or the food price pathway when they increase the availability of micronutrient-rich foods in the market place. This research aims to understand the factors associated with the uptake of biofortified crop varieties (BCV) among smallholder farmers in Uganda and derive policy information to support their accelerated uptake. The analysis used two waves of panel data consisting of 6,400 observations collected from 6 districts in Uganda as part of the Feed the Future (FtF) innovation laboratory for nutrition. Descriptive analysis was used to help discern the differences between adopters and non-adopters of BCV. Double hurdle regression analysis was used to understand the factors associated with adoption and the intensity of adoption of biofortified crop varieties. Descriptive results reveal significant differences between adopters and non-adopters of BCV. Double hurdle regression analysis results indicate that the primary determinants of uptake of biofortified crop varieties include geographical location, extension staff visits, household size, and mobile phone ownership. Other important factors associated with the adoption of BCV include the amount of land owned by the household. Results suggest that extension staff visits, and mobile phone ownership were important sources of information for rural households that appear to drive the decision to adopt biofortified crop varieties. Meanwhile, household size, regional location of the household and total land owned were important motivators in adopting BCV technology. From the present analysis, it was not possible to clearly discern the key drivers of the intensity of adoption of biofortified crop varieties among smallholder households in Uganda. Key words: Biofortification, smallholder farmers, quasi experimental design, double-hurdle regression, Uganda

Joint Forces: The Impact of Intrahousehold Cooperation on Welfare in East African Agricultural Households

In low- and middle-income countries, poor cooperation between members of smallholder agricultural households may lead to inefficient allocation of productive resources. This study estimates the causal mediating effects of cooperation between spouses on household welfare and public goods provision in Ugandan and Tanzanian monogamous smallholder coffee farming households. The random encouragement to participate in an intensive training program coaching couples in farming as a household enterprise and participatory intrahousehold decision making, which stimulates cooperation and, in turn, household welfare and public goods provision, enables estimating causal mediating effects while avoiding challenges of endogeneity. Spousal cooperation has positive mediating effects on household welfare, measured by total household income per capita and food security, and on household public goods provision, measured by the adoption intensity of agronomic practices and use of improved seed for food crops. Spousal cooperation has larger effects on total household income per capita with longer duration of marriage. HIGHLIGHTS In Uganda and Tanzania, the Gender Household Approach program aims to improve gender relations by promoting spousal cooperation. Participatory decision making implies strengthening women’s voice and ability to include their claims in a household. GHA presents a concept of women’s empowerment that avoids backlash by promoting shared control of resources and agency. Programs that promote spousal cooperation can improve the welfare and public goods provision of agricultural households.

How specific resilience pillars mitigate the impact of drought on food security: Evidence from Uganda

Uganda continues to be prone to climate shocks especially drought which has adverse impact on food security. This paper studies household resilience capacities with special focus on how different resilience capacities mitigate the impact of drought on food security. The study follows the TANGO framework to identify resilience components, and two-step factor analysis to construct three resilience capacity indexes (absorptive, adaptive, and transformative) and overall resilience capacity index. To examine the mitigating role of resilience capacities, we interact resilience capacity indexes with the different measures of drought. The study employs a panel data from the Uganda National Panel Surveys (UNPS) undertaken between 2010/11 and 2018/19, spanning five waves. To minimise the bias arising from subjective self-reported drought shock, we introduce an objective measure of drought from the global SPEI database into the UNPS data. We also address attrition bias by controlling for attrition hazard estimated from the attrition function. Our analysis reveals that households in Uganda exhibit significantly low and nearly static resilience capacities. This implies majority of households in Uganda remain highly vulnerable to food insecurity in the event of severe drought. The study shows that building resilience capacities is an effective way of protecting households from such devastating situation. Whereas there are mixed results on the effectiveness of different resilience capacities in mitigating the effects of drought depending on the measure of food security and drought, decomposition of each of the three resilience capacities reveals critical aspects in each capacity. Succinctly, access to climate related information and linking social capital are very critical under adaptive capacity, infrastructure services are very key under transformative capacity, while informal safety nets are critical under absorptive capacity. Therefore, interventions that enhance households’ access to the above aspects are very important in building resilience to shocks, especially drought.

Do Shocks and Environmental Factors Shape Personality Traits? Evidence from the Ultra-Poor in Uganda

Personality characteristics and non-cognitive skills are key determinants of decision-making and economic outcomes. While personality is commonly believed to be stable after age 30, evidence suggests that significant changes in occupational or social roles, or exposure to family or health shocks, can have effects on personality traits. In this paper, we study the short-term effects of two kinds of shocks on measured personality traits among young adults from ultra-poor households in Uganda. In particular, we examine the short-term impacts of (i) a randomized anti-poverty program and (ii) environmental changes—exposure to drought, high temperatures, and wind—on personality traits. We find significant differences in measured personality traits across these factors, in particular among food insecure individuals. These results suggest that economic shocks and environmental factors may have an effect on the non-cognitive skills among young ultra-poor adults. On the other hand, our results also suggest that caution is warranted when using these tools used to measure personality traits in such rural, low-income settings.

Adapting to an aggregate shock: The impact of the Covid-19 crisis on rural households.

We examine the response of rural Ugandan households to a large aggregate shock, the Covid-19 pandemic, during and one year after the first lockdown in March 2020. Using 6 rounds of phone surveys from 558 households in western Uganda, we find that household income recovery from the lockdown differs by whether households had a business pre-pandemic. After an initial sharp fall, the incomes of those without a business have recovered to pre-pandemic levels. However, the relatively better-off households with a business before the pandemic still have one-third lower income, due to sustained closure of businesses even after the end of the first lockdown restrictions. Additionally, business-owning households have 30% lower wealth one-year into the pandemic, driven by 44% lower assets, 45% drop in savings, and a 15 fold increase in net-borrowing, suggesting long-term damage. Our findings point to the need to support households who face dwindling finances to fall back on.

Causal inference for time-varying treatments in latent Markov models: An application to the effects of remittances on poverty dynamics

To assess the effectiveness of remittances on the poverty level of recipient households, we propose a causal inference approach that may be applied with longitudinal data and time-varying treatments. The method relies on the integration of a propensity score based technique, the inverse propensity weighting, with a general latent Markov (LM) framework. It is particularly useful when the outcome of interest is a characteristic that is not directly observable, and the analysis is focused on: (i) clustering units in a finite number of classes according to this latent characteristic and (ii) modelling the evolution of this characteristic across time depending on the received treatment. Parameter estimation is based on a two-step procedure. First, individual propensity score weights are computed accounting for predetermined covariates. Then, a weighted version of the standard LM model likelihood, based on such weights, is maximised by means of an expectation-maximisation algorithm or, alternatively, adopting a stepwise procedure. Finite-sample properties of the proposed estimators are studied by simulation. The application is focused on the effect of remittances on the poverty status of Ugandan households, based on a longitudinal survey spanning the period 2009–2014, and where manifest variables are indicators of deprivation. We find that remittances reduce the probability of falling into poverty, whereas they exert no impact on the probability of moving out of poverty.

Hiding or Pleasing: Spousal Disagreement Among Ugandan Maize Farmers

To gain a better understanding of intrahousehold bargaining processes, surveys increasingly collect data from co-heads individually, especially on decision-making, asset ownership and labour contributions. However, answers provided by co-heads to the same set of questions often differ substantially. Recent research suggests that while some of this disagreement is due to random measurement error and cognitive bias, part also reflects non-overlapping information sets. We document differences in answers between male and female co-heads in monogamous smallholder maize-farming households in Uganda. We first confirm that not all disagreement can be explained by measurement error or bias. Using a field experiment, we then test if disagreement is due to information asymmetry between male and female co-heads. We also test an alternative explanation where discord is attributed to co-heads’ tendency to respond in line with prevailing gender norms and social customs. While the interventions did seem to reduce discord in survey response about decision-making, we do not find that information asymmetry nor reporting in line with gender norms and customs are the primary drivers of disagreement.

Crop commercialization and nutrient intake among farming households in Uganda

Agricultural commercialization is expected to enhance a wide array of household welfare indicators, notably, nutrition. Using LSMS-ISA survey data for Uganda, this paper examines the channels through which household nutrient intake is influenced under crop commercialization. A control function was employed to address issues of endogeneity, while the Generalized Propensity Score technique was used to estimate the continuous treatment effects. The results show that commercialization mainly affects nutrient intake through the resulting crop income. From a gender perspective, the findings show that female control of farm income positively and significantly affects the overall nutrient intake. The findings point to three important implications. First, interventions geared towards agricultural commercialization are beneficial to household nutrition via income generation. Given this income-nutrition linkage, proactive steps towards support for nutrition-sensitive commercial agriculture are needed to ensure that nutrient-rich foods are available on the market. Second, there is the need to improve knowledge and perception of what constitutes a good diet. This would provide a stronger linkage between agricultural production, income, and nutrition. Third, gender relations in a household are critical for nutrition outcomes. As such, measures which can empower women to own and control key agricultural production assets are needed to reinforce the link between commercialization and nutrition.

Comparative Analysis of Food Security Measures by Vitamin A-rich Food Consumption Among Mother-Child Dyads in Uganda

ObjectivesThis study examined mother-child differences in vitamin A-rich food consumption and conduct a comparative analysis of three food security indicators on household vitamin A-rich food consumption for 375 mother-child dyads from selected sweet potato growing households in Uganda. MethodsThis study examined baseline data collected by the International Potato Centre (IPC) for an initiative on the development and delivery of biofortified crops in Uganda. Dietary intake and livelihoods data was collected from women residing in households that grew sweet potatoes in selected regions in Uganda. Eligibility criteria included women who were pregnant or lactating and/or had children 6–24 months. The analytical dataset had 375 woman-child dyads. An adjusted Hellen Keller International (HKI) guide was used to examine data on vitamin A consumption. Scores were weighted for animal- and plant-based sources of vitamin A. Data were stratified by woman or child to allow for within- and between-person variances in vitamin A-rich food consumption. Dependent sample Student’s t-tests, Pearson’s correlation analysis and a repeated measure analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) tested for differences in the vitamin A-rich food consumption mother-child dyads. ResultsThere was a statistically significant difference in the mean consumption of vitamin A-rich foods for women and children (F (1,370) = 6.51, p = .011). Women had a higher vitamin A consumption (M = 2.08, SD = 2.11) than children in the same household (M = 1.39, SD = 2.17). This was qualified by a significant interaction with the household wealth index (F (1,370) = 4.31, p = .039), however not with household dietary diversity (F (1,370) = 3.16, p = .07), and household food insecurity access (F (1,370) = 0.32, p = .57). HDDS and the wealth index were associated with the mother’s consumption of vitamin A-rich food but not with the children’s. ConclusionsInitiatives that target mother-child dyads should be aware of factors such as intrahousehold food distribution and cultural practices that may differentially impact child consumption of vitamin A-rich and other micronutrient-rich foods. Child-friendly initiatives are recommended to maximize nutritional benefits for children under five years. Funding SourcesInternational Potato Center and the University of Massachusetts Amherst.