A land-locked country in East Africa, Uganda’s growth trajectory is vulnerable to multiple risks. 

Uganda hosts Africa’s largest number of refugees. There are over 1.8 million refugees and asylum seekers from Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan and other countries. 

Despite Uganda’s progressive refugee policy providing land and freedom of movement, refugees continue to face significant livelihood, food security and economic constraints. 

A volatile geopolitical environment could weigh on investment and exports, while the increasing frequency of droughts and floods heightens the vulnerability of Uganda’s smallholder farmers. 

Uganda is ranked 159 out of 193 countries on the Human Development Index, according to the Human Development Report 2023. Despite its agricultural potential and significant exports, Uganda’s food insecurity levels remain classified as ”serious” by the 2024 Global Hunger Index. This poses further challenges to the country’s ability to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 2 on Zero Hunger.

According to the 2022 Uganda Demographic and Health Survey, around one in four children in Uganda are stunted (too short for their age) – a sign of chronic malnutrition. Poor-quality diets are creating health crises, undermining human capital development and jeopardising economic prosperity. 

While the country has made some gains in reducing malnutrition, the situation remains concerning – particularly in refugee reception centres and in the semi-arid region of Karamoja. 

What the World Food Programme is doing in Uganda

Crisis response
WFP provides cash and food assistance to refugees, starting with hot meals on arrival and continued support as they settle. However, due to funding shortfalls, WFP began reducing rations in March 2025. Refugees are now categorized: the most vulnerable receive 40 percent rations, moderately vulnerable 22 percent, and the least vulnerable are phased out of assistance. These are the lowest rations WFP provides in East Africa. In May 2025, WFP cut the number of refugees receiving aid from 1.6 million to 662,000, prioritizing those most at risk of food insecurity. These reductions are expected to worsen malnutrition and hunger. Despite challenges, WFP promotes self-reliance through a market-oriented model, supporting 50,000 households – 70 percent refugees and 30 percent host community members – to transition from aid dependency to meeting their own needs.
Climate action
WFP works with communities to build household and community assets that reduce the risk of disaster, strengthen livelihoods and build resilience over time. This is done by empowering communities, enhancing preparedness to cope and adapt to climate shocks, introducing climate resilient and nutritious crops, establishing financing solutions for innovative climate-smart technology, and implementing regenerative water management. In Karamoja, WFP is encouraging livelihood diversification such as fish farming and beekeeping.
School meals
WFP provides a daily hot meal to 255,000 students in 320 primary schools in Karamoja (78 percent of schools in the region). WFP’s Home-Grown School Feeding model provides local, diverse and nutritious meals, while providing a market for smallholder farmers. In 2024, WFP bought 3,484 metric tons of cereals and pulses from smallholder farmers, of which 1,800 metric tons were used in 320 schools across Karamoja. This contributed USD 1.9 million to the local economy. To complement the typical food basket and improve the diet diversity, WFP has introduced orange fleshed sweet potatoes to school gardens across 140 schools in Karamoja, where students are taught how to grow it and take cuttings to their families. To promote clean cooking and improve fuel efficiency, WFP installed energy-saving cooking stoves in 65 schools in 2024. WFP has supported the Government of Uganda joining the School Meals Coalition and developing the first National School Feeding Policy.
Nutrition
WFP is transitioning towards a sustainable malnutrition-prevention model. This transformation marks a significant pivot from a treatment-based approach to a prevention-oriented strategy that empowers communities towards sustainable production and consumption of safe, nutritious and affordable diets – enhancing the quality of nutrition services and promoting pro-nutrition behaviours. This programmatic shift focuses on strengthening Government capacity at subnational levels, to integrate malnutrition prevention into routine health services. This involves capacity building of health care workers and community health structures (village health teams and care groups). In 2024, WFP provided malnutrition prevention or treatment support to 300,000 children pregnant and breastfeeding women.
Support to smallholder farmers
WFP’s Agriculture and Market Support is a set of pro-smallholder interventions focusing on post-harvest management, value addition, entrepreneurship and market access. It focuses on strengthening value chains to reduce post-harvest losses, strengthen national institution capacities, create employment opportunities foryoung people – particularly women – and improve access to markets. In 2024, WFP supported 68,000 (67 percent women) smallholder farmers with training, inputs, equipment and infrastructure.
Social protection
Uganda has made progress in reducing poverty through social protection programmes, but growing needs outpace current coverage. To help bridge the gap, WFP partners with the Government and UN agencies to support vulnerable communities. Through the Integrated Social Protection Programme, WFP delivers nutrition-sensitive cash transfers. The Pro-Resilience Action initiative strengthens institutions to better prepare for and respond to shocks. In 2024, WFP, FAO and the Government reached 800,000 people with early-warning alerts, enabling communities to take action ahead of droughts and floods.
Supply chain
WFP provides logistics services to the humanitarian community in Uganda and neighbouring countries. WFP maintains a satellite hub under the international network of the United Nations Humanitarian Response Depot, to support strategic prepositioning of emergency relief items for regional responses. In 2024, WFP provided critical supply chain services, supporting the World Health Organization, the Ministry of Health, Malteser International and World Vision. In 2024, WFP transported 10,000 metric tons of partner stocks and delivered 173,745 metric tons of food assistance to 545 locations across Uganda. Regionally, WFP facilitated delivery of 33,000 metric tons of food assistance (1,650 truckloads) to Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya and South Sudan.

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Partners and donors

Achieving Zero Hunger is the work of many. Our work in Uganda is made possible by the support and collaboration of our partners and donors, including:
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Canada China

Operations in Uganda

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Contacts

Office

Plot 142, Boazman Road, Mbuya Behind Mbuya Catholic Parish P.O Box 7159
Kampala
Uganda

Phone
+256 (0) 312 242 000
Email
WFP.Kampala@wfp.org
For media inquiries
WFP.Kampala@wfp.org
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