Approximately 112,270 children aged 6-59 months and 8,980 pregnant or breastfeeding women (PBW) across the Karamoja region are facing or expected to face acute malnutrition and will need treatment between March 2024 and February 2025 in the Karamoja region of Uganda. Of that total, 21,719 are severe acute malnutrition cases and 90,551 are moderate acute malnutrition cases. The total number of children in need of treatment has increased by 25.7 percent from 89,000 in 2023 to 11,2270 in 2024. 

Amudat and Kaabong districts were classified in IPC AMN Phase 4 (Critical) whereas Karenga, Kotido and Moroto districts were classified in IPC AMN Phase 3 (Serious) while Abim, Nabilatuk, Nakapiripirit and Napak districts, were classified in IPC AMN Phase 2 (Alert). High acute malnutrition in the Karamoja sub-region was attributed to inadequate food consumption, disease, inadequate water and poor sanitation and high female headed households associated with high workload and low economic power especially in rural households. 

• Scale up Maternal, Infant, Young Child, and Adolescent Nutrition (MIYCAN): Conduct education campaigns to enhance caregivers’ knowledge and practices on maternal and adolescent nutrition, exclusive breastfeeding (EBF), and complementary feeding.
• Strengthen C-MAM Coverage: Enhance the timely identification, referral, and treatment of acutely malnourished children and pregnant and lactating women at both community and facility levels. Implement measures to increase the treatment of MAM cases to prevent deterioration into Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM). Strengthen Follow up on patients enrolled in therapeutic and supplementary care programs to ensure recovery and reduce relapses.
• Forecasting and Reporting on supplies: Improve the forecasting and reporting of nutrition and health supplies to prevent stock outs.
• Expand Nutrition and Immunization Services: Scale up outreach programs to cover essential nutrition and immunization services, ensuring that all communities receive equitable access.
• Enhance Disease Surveillance: Monitor diseases like diarrhea, malaria, acute respiratory infections (ARI), and tuberculosis (TB), as these contribute to acute malnutrition especially in districts like Kaabong.