Karamoja

{{for|the film produced by [[Kroger Babb]]|Karamoja (film)}} [[Image:Karamoja (new districts).png|thumb|right|Districts of Karamoja]] [[Image:Karamoja-location.png|thumb|right|Location in Uganda]] '''Karamoja sub-region''', commonly known as '''Karamoja''', is a region in [[Northern Region, Uganda|Northern Uganda]]. ==Location== The subregion, is located in northeastern [[Uganda]] and comprises the following seven districts: * [[Abim District]] * [[Amudat District]] * [[Kaabong District]] * [[Kotido District]] * [[Moroto District]] * [[Nakapiripirit District]] * [[Napak District]] Kaabong District lies to the extreme northeast and borders both [[Southern Sudan]] and [[Kenya]]. It is home to [[Kidepo Valley National Park]]. The most-eastern district in Karamoja is [[Amudat District]]. [[Nakapiripirit District]], borders [[Mount Elgon National Park]]. == Geography == The region of Karamoja extends over 27,900 square kilometers. The region is mostly a [[semi-arid]] [[plain]] with harsh [[climate]] and low annual [[rainfall]]. It is largely [[savanna]]h, covered with seasonal [[grass]]es, thorned plants, and occasional small trees. The average [[elevation]] of the plain of Karamoja lies at around 1400 meters (4500 feet) above sea level. The large mountains; [[Mt. Kadam]], [[Mt. Napak]], and [[Mt. Moroto]] — lying at the periphery of Karamoja — have peaks reaching around 3000 meters (10,000 feet) and higher. In 2011, the Karamoja sub-region was the site of an important fossil discovery. Paleontologists discovered the remains of ''Ugandapithecus major,'' a 20 million year old ancestor of present day primates. "It is a highly important fossil and it will certainly put Uganda on the map in terms of the scientific world," said Martin Pickford, one of the researchers involved in the discovery. ==Population== The southern districts of [[Moroto District|Moroto]], [[Nakapiripirit District|Nakapiripirit]] and [[Napak District|Napak]], are inhabited largely by the [[Nilotic]] [[Karimojong]] ethnic group, which consists of three clans: Matheniko, Bokora and Pian. The [[Tepeth]] are found in [[Moroto District]] and in the [[Napak District|Napak Mountains]], and there are said to be a few of the original inhabitants, the [[Oropom people|Oropom]] in the region. The [[Pokot people|Pokot]] live in [[Amudat District]], neighboring [[Kenya]] and some also reside across the border in Kenya. [[Kotido District]] is largely inhabited by the [[Jie (Uganda)|Jie]] and [[Kaabong District]] by the [[Dodoth people|Dodoth]] (or Dodoso), together with the few [[Ik people|Ik]] (aka Teuso). [[Abim District]] is inhabited by the [[Ethur]], comprising the [[Jabwor]] in the north and (a related tribe) in the south. The name Karimojong while strictly belonging to the southern clans of [[Matheniko]], [[Bokora]] and [[Pian, Uganda|Pian]], is applied to the Jie and Dodoth due to similarities in language and culture. Significant numbers of the peoples of Karamoja belong to and attend both the [[Catholic]] and [[Anglican]] Churches. Baptist and PAG churches are also coming up in the area. There has been a small population of [[Muslim]] Karamojong people for several decades, particularly around [[Moroto Town|Moroto]]. Many, especially those who did not attend school, retain their traditional religious beliefs, and for some Christianity or Islam is something of a veneer over this. Incomers are represented in all the above groups. According to 2002 national population and housing Census, the population of Karamoja has grown at an annual average rate of 7.2% from 370,423 in 1991 to 966,245 in 2002. The highest annual population growth rate of 9.7%, was in [[Kotido District]]. ==Armed Conflict== As pastoralism and conflict are strongly interrelated, the integrated management of natural resources, like pasture, livestock and water becomes crucial. In terms of economic activity, the region depends on cattle keeping, mining, and trading in agricultural produce with neighboring districts. In mid-2006, as first reported by Inner City Press and then by The New Vision, the United Nations Development Programme halted its disarmament programs in Karamoja in response to human rights abuses in the parallel forcible disarmament programs carried out by the Uganda People's D efence Force (UPDF). There have been reports of atrocities and many civil victims of the disarmament, as army forces and nomadic warriors clashed. The disarmament campaign usually involves the UPDF surrounding manyatas (villages) and evacuating people from the interior, prior to orchestrating searches for hidden weapons. In September 2007, Human Rights Watch released a 97-page report detailing alleged torture and even killings of children. However, this report also acknowledged that the UPDF's high command was attempting to address discipline problems, partly by providing human rights training, which had, by the time of the publication date, lead to cordon and search operations becoming "markedly less violent." There were a number of significant clashes between the UPDF and nomadic warriors in 2010. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, said in June 2010 that at least 19 people had been killed in two incidents on January 4-7 and January 22, when the army used a helicopter gunship and ground forces against warrior communities, before a third incident, on April 24, which resulted in at least 10 deaths. She claimed that the death toll from all three incidents was, most likely, even higher than the confirmed numbers she quoted. She called for the opening of an impartial inquiry into the attacks. By early 2011, the UPDF said it was starting to scale down its military operations in Karamoja. It claimed to have largely cleared the region of illegal weapons. However, in 2011, fresh allegations of torture carried out by the army in Karamoja were recorded by journalists working on a Pulitzer Center-funded project . ==Human Development== Human welfare, living conditions and quality of life of the people in Karamoja have declined considerably due to various factors such as environmental issues, insecurity, marginalization, illiteracy, poor health and poor infrastructure. Moroto and Nakapiripirit have the lowest HDI of 0.183 and Kotido has 0.194 as compared to an average of 0.4491 for Uganda. The Districts of Karamoja have the highest human Poverty Indices (HPI) with Nakapiripirit and Moroto Districts having 63.5% and Kotido has 53.8%, compared to the national average of 37.5%, Central region of 31.5%, Northern region 46.1%, Western region 39.0% and Eastern region 37.1%. (See table two). There are at least 5 regional hospitals in Karamoja, providing affordable health services to the area. The locations include Matany, Moroto, Amudat, Kotido and Kaabong. Poverty is increasing and according to the Karimojong, the main factors responsible for poverty include persistent poor harvest as a result of dry spells and droughts, cattle rustling and insecurity, animal death, lack of water, poor farming practices, ill health and disability, high bride price for marriage, lack of skills and unemployment, limited sources of income, poor governance and landlessness (UPPAP 2002). The '''1980 famine''' in Karamoja was, in terms of mortality rates, one of the worst in history. 21% of the population died, including 60% of the infants. Much of Karamoja remained heavily dependent on the largesse of the United Nations World Food Programme, as the region entered the second decade of the twenty first century. In 2011, in the wake of the severe [[2011 Eastern Africa drought]], food shortages were again reported in the region as well as other areas in northern and eastern Uganda. Karamoja and the [[Bulambuli District|Bulambuli]] district, in particular, are among the worst hit areas, with an estimated 1.2 million Ugandans affected. The Ugandan government has also indicated that as of September 2011, acute deficits in foodstuffs are expected in 35 of the country's districts. ==Language and Ethnicity== The Karimojong, Jie and Dodoth are part of the Karimojong Cluster of Nilotic tribes (also known as the Teso Cluster). The languages of the Jie and Dodoth are not quite the same as, but mutually intelligible with Karimojong. The ethnicity of the Ethur is not entirely certain, but they are regarded as essentially Nilotic (if mixed) and their language is regarded as a Luo dialect. The Ik and Tepeth have their own languages, but these are under great pressure from the [[Karimojong_language]] (Ŋakarimojong)around them. Basic glossary with some Ŋakarimojong words: {| class="wikitable" |- !English !ŋaKarimojong |- |Hello! |Ejok-a? |- |Hello! (response) |Ejok-nooi |- |Thank you |Alakara (lit. I am happy) |- | How are you (father/mother/child)? | Ie-ia (papa/toto/ikoku)? |- | Good-bye! | Ikianyun! |- | What is your name? | Ŋae ekonikiro? |- | Do you go to school? | Isyomi iyong-a? |- | Yes | Ee (pronounced "Eh") |- | No! | Mam! (pronounced "Maam!") |- | God | Akuj |- Goat | Akine| Water | Ŋakipi |- | Fire | Akim |- | Goat | Akine |- | White person/people | Emusugut (male singular) Amusugut (female singular) Ŋimusug (plural) |} ==External links== *[http://www.ugpulse.com/search.asp?ugaSrch=karamo Karamoja and the Karamojong on UGPulse.com] *[http://www.forlife-worldwide.com For Life Onlus is a non profit making Italian registered charity working in Karamoja Uganda] *[http://www.karamojadata.org Karamoja Data Centre] *[http://www.moroto.go.ug Moroto District website] *[http://www.nakapiripirit.go.ug Nakapiripirit District website] *[http://www.karamoja.eu An awareness-raising campaign on Karamoja in Europe] *[http://www.karamoja.com Karamoja!] {{coord missing|Uganda}} {{Use dmy dates|date=June 2011}}