KAABONG Table of Contents Page

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1 Drought Bulletin KAABONG JANUARY 2012 Table of Contents Page District Map 1 Drought Bulletin summary 2 Vegetation Condition/ Rainfall/ Temperature 3 Humidity / Weather forecast 4 Livestock Body Condition / Migration / mortality / abortion 5 Livestock Diseases / animals in the market/ grazing areas 6 Crops planted/ Crop Condition / Crop Yield 7 Household water / water sources / time spent / safe water 8 Malnutrition / type of food / migration of people 9 Price of Firewood, Charcoal and Labor/ Terms of Trade 10 Freedom of Movement / Coping Mechanisms 11 Seasonal Calendars 12 Page 1

2 January experienced sunny, windy and dusty weather conditions with no rain at all. The vegetation showed increasing yellowing and shedding of leaves among Desert dates and Neem trees, with no appearance of mushrooms and mosses due to the prevailing dry spell and this is normal. The prediction from the Meteorological Department mentioned that there are high chances that the whole of Karamoja region is expected to have dry and sunny conditions during the month of February 2012, with more frequent dry winds that are likely to expose the communities to wild fires and burn of houses. The livestock body condition deteriorated due to inadequate pasture and water as a result of bush burning and the dry spell. The time spent by livestock to access grazing areas decreased from 2 hours to 0.8 hours because livestock relocated to their Sub Counties where pasture had rejuvenated. Livestock migration was characterized by relocation of livestock from Lochom main Kraal to respective Sub Counties. There were no major killer livestock diseases and no animals were brought to the market for sale because households were still food secure. Due to the availability of more boreholes, borehole usage as the main water source increased from 57% to 68%; the average time spent to fetch water from boreholes remained constant (1.8 hours) and the quantity of water fetched at households increased from 76.1L to 81.9L (10.9L to 11.7L/person/day). No crop planting took place in January, threshing of Bull rush and Sorghum was ongoing. Firewood and Charcoal prices decreased from 3,000UGX to 2,400UGX per average bundle and from 5,250UGX to 5,100UGX per basin due to increased supply since they were the only viable economic activities engaged in by most people. Casual labor prices increased from 2,182 UGX to 2,511 UGX because of labor demanding construction works and brick making activities. The Terms of Trade for Bull/Sorghum, Charcoal/Sorghum and Labor/Sorghum decreased due to a sharp increase in Sorghum prices. Households consumed mainly Sorghum and Maize accompanied by Wild fruits/leaves/game, Beans, Meat, Pumpkins, and Cowpeas. Due to reduced food stocks among households that had not harvested, coping strategies like consume less expensive cereals, begging for food, borrow food on credit from another household, gone an entire day without meals, rely on gifts of food, and sent household member elsewhere to eat were reported. All households freely moved during day with 2% of moving freely at night due to security personel deployment. RECOMMENDATIONS LIVESTOCK SECTOR Production Department is urging partners to join in the continuous sensitization of farmers on bush burning so as to preserve pastures (standing hay) for animals. Farmers urged to continue vaccinating cattle against FMD and CBPP. Drought Bulletin summary for the Month of JANUARY 2012 AGRICULTURE SECTOR Farmers are advised to early prepare their gardens and purchase inputs for the next season. Oxen for ploughing should be well fed and trained so as to be fit during land opening. Farmers are discouraged from bush burning so as to preserve soil nutrients and water. Farmers are advised to migrate to fertile areas like western parts of Lolelia, Moruitit to open land for the next agriculture season. This Drought Bulletin is a representation of 9 parishes in Kaabong District, namely: Karenga and Lokori of Karenga Sub County; Toroi, Lokanayona and Lodiko of Loyoro Sub County; Kasimeri and Kakamar of Sidok Sub County; Kalapata of Kalapata Sub County; and Lokolia of Kaabong Sub County. Page 2

3 Vegetation Condition Observation %HH Desert dates (Ekoteete) becoming yellow 56 Neem Tree becoming yellow 54 Desert dates (Ekoteete) shedding leaves 80 Neem Tree shedding leaves 37 Mosses and mushrooms are appearing 0 There was increased yellowing and shedding of leaves among Desert dates and Neem resulting from persistent dry conditions. No appearance of mushrooms and mosses, which is normal. Rainfall (mm) No rain at all was reported in Kotido this month, as estimated by the satellite imageries. This represents normal condition for this period of the year. Source: FEWSNET Temperature C There was no information on Temperature for the month of January due to technical faults at the Automatic Weather Station Page 3

4 Humidity There was no information on Humidity for the month of January due to technical faults at the Automatic Weather Station Weather forecast It should be noted that there are high chances that the whole of Karamoja region is expected to have dry and sunny conditions during the month of February 2012, with more frequent dry winds that are likely to expose the communities to wild fires and burn of houses. It is also important to note that:- Out break of diseases associated with dry conditions are likely to occur to both humans and animals. The sunny and dry weather conditions are likely to lead to reduced foliage and pastures for livestock and also reduce availability of water resources Likelihood of high day time temperatures (30-38 C), especially in Kaabong district, may give rise to heat waves which is a potential health risk. It should also be noted that cases of Meningitis diseases may also occur in such places Problems associated with dust or dust storms may occur in some isolated areas, as result of dry conditions. The factors responsible for the expected weather/climate patterns over Karamoja region during February 2012: Position of the Overhead sun which is currently in the Southern hemisphere. This gives more to Southern hemisphere. As a result of this heating, surface air expands, becomes lighter, and rises creating a low pressure region over this sector. The rising air in this region is replaced by converging winds emanating from all high pressure zones. Such areas of convergence are the ones expected to receive enhanced rainfall. These areas include parts of southern Tanzania and several countries in Southern Africa. It should be noted that at this time of the year, Uganda receives winds that originate from Arabian Desert. These winds (North East) blowing over Uganda have continental track through Ethiopia, Somali and Sudan. Therefore by the time they reach Uganda, they have already lost moisture on their track hence becoming hot and dry and affect the country with hazy conditions. Another important factor is La Niña conditions which have been prevailing across the tropical Pacific Basin since October 2011, which are now close to its peak, with a gradual decline expected over the first quarter of La Niña is characterized by unusually cold ocean temperatures in the Equatorial Pacific, once it occurs; several parts in Uganda especially Karamoja are normally associated with dry conditions. Source: Department of Meteorology. Page 4

5 Livestock Body Condition The livestock body condition could not be ascertained but according to the District Veterinary Officer, it deteriorated due to inadequate pasture and water as a result of bush burning and the dry spell. This is expected to decrease further if it does not rain in February. Livestock Migration There was no livestock migration reported in January but there was relocation from Lochom protected Kraal in Sidok to their respective Sub Counties (Lolelia, Kalapata, Kaabong East and West and Lodiko) because farmers wanted to be near homes where family members can benefit from animal products like milk and meat. Calves mortality / abortion (%) The Calves mortality and abortion rates could not be ascertained for January. But according to the District Veterinary Officer, there were no deaths and abortions reported because there were no major killer diseases due to dry season. Page 5

6 Livestock Disease Incidence Disease Type of animals affected Location No. of animals affected No reports of any livestock disease for January. Type and number of animals in the market Type of animal Number Type of animal Number Bulls 0 Bull calves 0 Cows 0 Heifer 0 There were no animals presented to the market for sale because households still had enough food harvested last year to survive on. But however, a few were sourced locally from Kraals and individuals for slaughter purposes. Accessibility to grazing areas (Time in Hrs) The average time spent by livestock to access grazing land decreased because animals relocated from the big Kraal in Lochom to their Sub Counties where pasture had rejuvenated. This is expected to increase in February due to depletion of nearby pasture. Page 6

7 Type of crops planted January is not a planting month. Farmers are advised to early prepare their gardens and purchase inputs for the next season. Oxen for ploughing should be well fed and trained so as to be fit during land opening. Farmers are discouraged from bush burning so as to preserve soil nutrients and water. Farmers are advised to migrate to fertile areas like western parts of Lolelia, Moruitit to open land for the next agriculture season. Crop Condition No information on crop condition for January but threshing of Bull rush and Sorghum was ongoing. Crop Yield No harvest took place in January. Page 7

8 Quantity of water fetched daily per household (Litres) Average amount of water fetched daily per household December 2011 January The daily household quantity of water fetched increased due to reduced queuing as a result of 7 boreholes drilled by Mercy Corps and Red Cross, and 10 were rehabilitated by Mercy Corps in Kaabong East and West Sub Counties. This implies that each household member had 11.7L/day, which is considered as normal for the pastoralist zone and slightly below normal for the agropastoral zone. This amount is likely to reduce in February due to expected queuing. Type of water sources and time spent to fetch water (hrs) Borehole usage as the main water source increased from 57% in December to 68% in January due to the fact that boreholes were widely available as most alternative sources dried up. This is likely to increase in February if it does not rain. The average time spent to fetch water from boreholes remained constant (1.8 hours) because of less queuing as populations were scattered to different available boreholes. This is likely to increase in February if livestock shares the same boreholes with people as commonly done in the middle of the dry season. Safe water points No information on access to safe water point was collected in January. Page 8

9 Incidence of Malnutrition There was no information on the GAM and SAM rates for the month of January Type of Food Eaten Households consumed mainly Sorghum and Maize accompanied by Beans, Wild fruits/leaves/game, Meat, Pumpkins, Cowpeas and Groundnuts. With the recent harvests, this indicates that households still have adequate and a variety of food types to benefit from. Out migration of people Total number of households who migrated December 2011 January No information on out movements of people for the month of January. Page 9

10 Price of Firewood and Charcoal (UGX) The price for an average bundle of firewood decreased from 3,000 UGX to 2,400 UGX and Charcoal prices per basin decreased from 5,250 to 5,100 UGX due to increased supply since they are the only viable economic activities engaged in by most people. Price of Labor (UGX) The prices of casual labor increased because of construction works and brick making especially in Karenga. Terms of Trade (ratio) Page 10 The Terms of Trade for Bull/Sorghum decreased due to a tremendous increase in Sorghum prices. Sorghum prices increased from 39,166 UGX to 90,000 UGX per 100kg bag because there was less available for sale because households will need it with time to survive. The price of an average bull increased from 550,000 UGX to 603,333 UGX because the households were still food secure and not willing to sell them. For the same reason, Charcoal/Sorghum and Labor/Sorghum decreased and this implies that charcoal and labor dependant households had inadequate money to purchase food for their families.

11 Freedom of Movement The security situation was worse in January compared to December. The month was characterized by raids and thefts in Kalapata, Kathile and Kapedo Sub Counties, hence no households moved freely at night. Coping Mechanisms Due to reduced food stocks in households that had not harvested, coping mechanisms such as consume less expensive cereals, begging for food, borrow food on credit from another household, gone an entire day without meals, rely on gifts of food, and sent household member elsewhere to eat were reported, though less than last month for most of them. With the increasing effects of dry season, pastoralists also continued to employed strategies like slaughter of old animals, de-stocking and splitting of herds, looping of trees and moving animals to far grazing areas. Page 11

12 Seasonal Calendar Page 12