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What Does the Climate Crisis Mean for Uganda?

  • Writer: Kids Club Kampala
    Kids Club Kampala
  • Jun 2, 2023
  • 3 min read

Updated: Jan 11, 2024

With World Environment Day on Monday 5th June, we take a closer look and how climate shocks have impacted those we work in partnership with in Kampala.



Why is Africa so vulnerable to climate change?


When it comes to the climate crisis, Africa is at the eye of the storm, with Uganda being in the top 10 countries most vulnerable to climate change. All 10 countries are in Africa.


Africa is vulnerable because it is exposed to damaging climate risks including extreme droughts, flooding and storms. Comparatively to the Global North, there is lower capacity for adaptability, making it further vulnerable to high rates of poverty, financial and technological constraints as a result of reliance on agriculture.


Africa has one thing in common with the rest of the world: the certainty that rising temperatures will exacerbate existing problems and vulnerabilities.


Shedding a light on how the climate crisis impacts those living in Kampala's slum districts


Uganda has always experienced a heavy rainy season. The season runs from March to May and from September to November. Over the past 35 years the rainy season has increased by two months and now commonly runs from March until the end of the year.





"When I was young, we used to have two seasons in a year, but now I realise that we have one ... and now when we plant things... they all dry up." Suzan Nakyejwe – Community Member



There are five major impacts of climate change on Ugandan communities;

Flash Flooding

The increase in rainfall impacts Uganda in many ways, one significant way is flooding. Flash flooding and slow-onset floods impact nearly 50,000 Ugandans every year. These are particularly common in urban areas such as Kampala. Poor sewage and sanitation systems in Kampala’s low lying slums mean that flooding has a devastating impact on our communities and their livelihoods.

Droughts

When Uganda is not experiencing extreme rainfall, the country tackles high temperatures and droughts. Between 2004 and 2013 droughts affected 2.4 million people living in Uganda. In the next 20 years, Uganda’s average temperature will increase by up to 1.5 ºC and, unless we do something about it, by 2080 the temperature in Uganda will increase by 4.3ºC.

Clean Water Shortages

7 million Ugandans already do not have access to safe water and 27 million do not have sanitation facilities. But when there is a drought, natural water resources dry up leaving many more without access to water.


With both droughts and heavy rain set to increase with climate change, more people will not have access to safe, clean water

Food Insecurity

Extreme weather, both rainfall and temperatures rising, impact food production and access to clean water. More rain and more flooding means that crops are washed away and livelihoods are destroyed. When the rain isn’t falling, Uganda experiences high temperatures, which continue to rise. This results in droughts that again prevent crops from growing and agricultural production


It is the poorest families who struggle to afford food when food becomes scarce.

Rise in Disease

Rainfall is also a major risk to access to water in slum communities. The already underdeveloped water resources, sewage systems, and draining systems are exhausted during heavy rain. There is therefore an increase in diseases such as cholera and dysentery which spread even faster due to lack of clean water to assist in healthy recovery.



What exhausts the implications of climate change is the growing urbanisation of Uganda’s cities. As extreme weather makes village life and farming almost impossible, more families relocate to the cities, many ending up in Kampala’s slums as climate refugees.


Uganda is home to 1.5 million refugees, fleeing from countries such as South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo. 80% of these refugees are based in settlements in the North, South West and Kampala, adding strain to the already overcrowded communities.

Kampala’s slum communities continue to struggle with climate induced migration and limited food, water, flash flooding, and droughts will leave those living in slums, particularly vulnerable. As cities and slums grow, freshwater is polluted and resources become strained with overpopulation.


Adapting to Climate Shocks


Every year homes, schools, businesses and churches are destroyed by rainfall and flooding. Recovering from a flood is costly, many in the slum communities are unable to rebuild after extreme weather and become homeless as a result.



In 2019 we held an emergency appeal to rebuild our classroom in Katanga after flooding caused irreversible damage and prevented children from getting an education


We've installed solar panels on buildings housing our projects to promote sustainable energy.


Uganda is on the front line of climate change and the communities we work with in Kampala's slums are some of the most vulnerable to extreme changes in the environment.


Kids Club Kampala continues to invest in the future of Kampala through our programmes and implementing sustainable practices as we go.


The climate crisis and poverty are inextricably linked and together we can support communities to to develop strategies to overcome climate shocks.






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