Living Land

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the communal land tenure system and the nomadic grazing

patterns of pastoralists.

The security situation in Karamoja, however, has a nega-

tive impact on the mobility of pastoralists and the pastoralist

system. Pastoralists are forced to kraal their animals every

night in fear of raiders from neighbouring South Sudan and

Kenya. This practice results in overgrazing around the kraals

and underutilization of grazing far away from them.

Crop production in Karamoja is rain-fed with high potential

yields in the western districts of Abim, Napak, Nakapiripirit

and the green belt of Kaabong and Kotido. These areas are

ideally suited for rain-fed crop production due to good quality

soils and annual rainfall of more than 800 mm. The main crops

produced are sorghum, maize, millet, beans, groundnuts,

cowpeas, pigeon peas, sesame, sunflower and sweet potatoes.

Cassava is a new crop recently successfully introduced into

the region due to its drought tolerance. Intercropping with

maize, sunflower, sorghum, beans and cowpeas is a common

practice in the higher rainfall zones.

Cultivation of fields and gardens is done manually with

hoes and only the more progressive farmers utilize oxen for

cultivation. The absence of oxen as the main method of culti-

vation was evident in the eastern districts with more draught

power utilization in the western districts. Women mainly do

primary cultivation and weeding while generally men take the

lead with harvesting.

Lack of water harvesting or soil conservation practices has

resulted in poor plant growth. Cultivation only starts after the

first rains. Seeding is done on poorly prepared seedbeds with

resultant low germination and uneven plant densities. In addi-

tion, weeding is done too late and weeds compete with crops for

available soil moisture. Cultivation and seedbed preparation is

key in the successful production of crops, yet the way it is done in

Karamoja makes agriculturalists highly vulnerable to dry periods.

The disaster risk assessment methodology as proposed by

Wisner, Blaikie, Cannon and Davis

and adapted by Jordaan

was used as the framework for drought risk assessment.

Phase 1 consists of the hazard analysis, Phase 2 the analysis

of vulnerabilities and coping capacity, while Phase 3 entails

the identification of adaptation and coping strategies.

The main determinant for hazard assessment in the case of

drought is water deficit for normal production caused by too

little precipitation and too high evapotranspiration. Assessment

of these factors was based on historical meteorological data and

contributions from focus groups and other stakeholders.

Dry conditions were analysed using satellite-based monthly

rainfall estimates at 5 km

spatial resolution. The source of the

rainfall data was ‘CHIRPS’, a blended rainfall dataset developed

by the United States Geological Survey for the whole of Africa for

agricultural productivity and long-termdrought analysis. Macharia

prepared the precipitation anomalies for the past 10 years.

Analysis of the results clearly shows that below-average

precipitation is the exception rather than the rule and the

perception of droughts every second year is totally unfounded.

Drought vulnerability was measured using indicators for

each of the seven districts and these were grouped according

to economic, social and environmental indicators. The main

economic vulnerability indicators were extremely low crop

yields as a result of poor agricultural practices; high post-

harvest losses (40-60 per cent); market imperfections; and

high animal mortalities mainly due to animal diseases.

The traditional social structure in Karamoja elevated the

importance of social vulnerability. The main social vulnerability

indicators were cultural beliefs and practices; gender discrimi-

nation and beliefs regarding gender responsibilities for food

production; extremely low literature levels; lack of knowledge

— which resulted in poor agricultural practices; and security,

which limits the movements of pastoralists and agriculturalists.

Environmental vulnerability to drought in this case refers to

natural resources such as grazing, soil and water. Important

indicators were bush encroachment, overgrazing, water avail-

ability and soil quality.

Typical grainaries

Sufficient, high quality grazing is essential to the pastoralist system, but

restocking could cause a return to overgrazing

Image: DiMTEC

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