Policy paper

UK–Uganda development partnership summary, July 2023

Published 17 July 2023

Introduction

The Strategy for International Development (IDS) places development at the heart of the UK’s foreign policy. It sets out a new approach to development, anchored in patient, long-term partnerships tailored to the needs of the countries we work with, built on mutual accountability and transparency. This approach goes beyond aid and brings the combined power of the UK’s global economic, scientific, security and diplomatic strengths to our development partnerships. Our 4 priorities are to deliver honest, reliable investment, provide women and girls with the freedom they need to succeed, step up our life-saving humanitarian work, and take forward our work on climate change, nature and global health. The Integrated Review Refresh (IR23) reiterates that sustainable development is central to UK foreign policy and sets out how the UK will go further and faster on development to reduce poverty and reinvigorate progress towards the SDGs. This Country Development Partnership Summary details how the IDS and IR23 will be put into practice with Uganda.

Country context

Politics

President Museveni has been in power since 1986. The next Presidential election is due in January 2026.

The political landscape and civic space in Uganda have been subject to restrictions and challenges in recent years. The Government of Uganda (GoU) has been criticised for limitations on political freedoms and civil society engagement. With a dominant ruling party, there seems to be a shrinking space for opposition and other political voices. The 2021 presidential elections saw restrictions placed on opposition candidates, and limitations on civil and political rights, including freedom of expression, assembly and association. NGOs and human rights defenders continue to encounter barriers to operating, limiting civic space.

Those from vulnerable communities may face discrimination, stigma, and limited opportunities. This is particularly true for those in the LGBT+ community, against whom discrimination and violence persist. The signing into law of the Anti-Homosexuality Act 2023 in May 2023 broadens the criminalisation of homosexuality in Uganda and increases the risk of violence, discrimination and persecution. It will set back the fights against HIV/AIDS and will damage Uganda’s international reputation. This will have implications for the nature of Uganda’s development partnership with international partners including the UK.

Development and economy

Uganda has made significant development gains in the past 3 decades: GDP per capita has more than tripled ^{[footnote 1]}, and the proportion of the population in poverty has fallen by over a third ^{[footnote 2]}. However, this progress has slowed in recent years. Real GDP per capita increased by only 1.0% per year between 2011 and 2022 ^{[footnote 3]}, and there was little progress in poverty reduction during much of the decade to 2020 – when COVID-19 saw poverty rates rise sharply, by 7.2 percentage points in rural areas and 3.1 percentage points in urban areas ^{[footnote 4]}.

Economic growth is expected in accelerate in the medium term, and Uganda may become an oil producer in the coming years ^{[footnote 5]}. However, the risk of debt distress has increased to moderate. ^{[footnote 6]}

Uganda has a fast-growing population, with 44% of the population under 15. ^{[footnote 7]} This is putting pressure on infrastructure, services and jobs. Human capital is relatively low, with the Human Capital Index assessing that children born in Uganda today are likely to be 38% as productive when they grow up as they could be if they enjoyed complete education and full health – below the sub-Saharan Africa average of 40%.^{[footnote 8]} Uganda ranks 61st globally for gender equality.^{[footnote 9]}

Uganda is the 13th most vulnerable country to the negative impacts of climate change ^{[footnote 10]}, and deforestation and land degradation are increasing these risks and damaging biodiversity.

The GoU’s development priorities and policies are set out in the Third National Development Plan, 2020 to 2021 to 2024 to 2025 (NDPIII), published in July 2020.

Uganda’s regional role

Uganda hosts 1.5 million refugees, the largest number in Africa – the majority from South Sudan (57%) and the Democratic Republic of Congo (32%).^{[footnote 11]} Uganda operates a progressive refugee policy, with refugees able to live, work and access services in Uganda, and acts as a regional ‘pressure valve’. Uganda also plays an important part on regional stability, including as one of the guarantors of the South Sudan peace process and as the largest contributor of troops to the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia.

Why Uganda matters to the UK

The UK is a long-standing development partner in Uganda and supports Uganda’s role in maintaining stability in the region. In addition, the UK and Uganda’s shared history has left many links between the countries, including people-to-people links and our connection as Commonwealth members. Total trade in goods and services between the UK and Uganda was £478 million in 2022, an increase of 58.3% on 2021.^{[footnote 12]}

UK focus

The focus of the UK’s development work in recent years has been on:

• clean economic development, including job creation (focused on northern Uganda), renewable energy and increasing access to financial services and regional trade
• health, particularly maternal and reproductive health and responding to health emergencies (Ebola outbreaks and the COVID-19 pandemic)
• protecting the most vulnerable, including through supporting the development of social protection systems and providing assistance to refugees
• education, with the recent focus on improving foundational skills
• promoting good governance and combating corruption

Outcomes achieved, in partnership with others, include:

• the establishment of a Senior Citizens Grant, which has benefitted around 440,000 Ugandans over the age of 80 ^{[footnote 13]}
• an increase in Uganda’s modern contraceptive prevalence rate from 35% in 2017 to 38.8% in June 2022, in spite of COVID-19-related spikes in demand for family planning ^{[footnote 14]}
• installing renewable energy generation that provides around 12% of national electricity supply ^{[footnote 15]}

Development partnership

UK programming aligns with NDPIII, and information is shared openly and regularly with the GoU. UK budget support to the GoU was suspended in 2013, and the UK does not provide any funding directly to the GoU.

UK programming is implemented by the UN, NGO and private-sector partners, and in close collaboration with other development partners, as described in more detail below.

Why and how: the UK’s development offer with Uganda

The UK’s development objectives in Uganda are:

• to drive clean, green, inclusive growth and mutual prosperity
• to improve the resilience and defend the rights of vulnerable people in Uganda
• to maintain Uganda’s role in hosting regional refugees, including by driving a more efficient response

Together, these support all 4 priorities set out in the IDS.

Clean, green, inclusive growth and mutual prosperity

The UK is utilising the full British Investment Partnership offer to drive clean, green, inclusive growth and mutual prosperity. This includes helping Uganda get the responsible private and development investment they need, including climate finance and finance for women, that is characterised by high standards, transparency and reliability. The UK will continue to tackle non-tariff trade barriers to increase trade between our countries, building on the new Developing Countries Trading Scheme. The UK will utilise a suite of new UK Centres of Expertise, providing tailored advice, ‘what works’ evidence, and technological solutions to the greatest development challenges we face including green cities and infrastructure, public finance and green and inclusive growth.

Improving resilience and defending rights of vulnerable people

The UK is using a combination of bilateral, regional and multilateral ODA programming, policy engagement, and work with the private sector to:

• empower women and girls, especially with choices on whether and when to have children, and economic opportunities
• increase resilience to climate change and protect biodiversity

We will also use a full range of tools to defend democratic norms and the rights of excluded groups, for example the LGBT+ community.

Refugee response

The UK will continue to provide targeted humanitarian assistance through ODA programming, benefitting both refugees and host communities. We will also continue to drive a more efficient refugee response, by: supporting the implementation of vulnerability-based prioritisation; advocating for increased delivery of support through digital cash rather than food in-kind – in order to stimulate local markets; and funding work to build and share evidence on effective approaches.

Who we work with

The UK works closely with other development partners in Uganda. This includes co-funding with other bilateral donors, for example in recent years, with:

• Ireland on the development of the Senior Citizens Grant
• Norway, Germany and the EU on renewable energy generation
• the USA on both malaria prevention and good governance

The UK also co-ordinates development policy and programming work with other bilateral and multilateral development partners, including:

• the World Bank
• UN Agencies (particularly the World Food Programme (WFP)
• UNICEF
• the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
• the World Health Organisation (WHO)
• Global Partnership for Education (GPE)
• Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria
• GAVI (the Vaccine Alliance)

The UK has chaired the Partners for Democratic Governance group in 2022 to 2023, is currently co-chair of the Local Development Partners Group, and engages in a range of sector working groups.

Key programmes

The table below shows the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office’s (FCDO’s) most significant live and recently closed / currently closing bilateral programmes in Uganda.^{[footnote 16]}

Live programmes

Programme name	Focus and outcomes	Value and spending
Building Resilience and an Effective Emergency Refugee Response (BRAER). (2018 to 2024)	Provides support both to refugees and their host communities in Uganda: meeting immediate needs, building foundations for self-reliance, and strengthening evidence. Over the last year nearly 800,000 individuals have received food assistance through cash transfers. Response to health emergencies.	Total value: £210 million Spend in FY 2022 to 2023: £18 million Planned spend in FY 2023 to 2024: £7 million
Climate Smart Jobs (CSJ) (2021 to 2026)	Growing climate smart agribusinesses to create jobs; supporting climate smart land management and services; removing barriers that stop businesses getting deals done. Aims to increase incomes for 300,000 people and store 1.8 million tonnes of CO2 over 10 years.	Total value: £39 million Spend in FY 2022 to 2023: £2 million. Planned spend in FY 2023 to 2024: £4 million.
Reducing High Fertility Rates and Improving Sexual Reproductive Health Outcomes in Uganda (RISE) (2018 to 2024)	Increasing access to age-appropriate sexual and reproductive health information, and voluntary uptake of modern contraception. Since 2017, has contributed 4.25 million ‘Couple Years of Protection’ and helped avert 2.1 million unintended pregnancies.	Total value: £30 million Spend in financial year 2022 to 2023: £5 million. Planned spend in financial year 2023 to 2024: £4 million

Recently closed or closing programmes

Programme name	Focus and outcomes	Value and spending
Northern Uganda: Transforming the Economy through Climate Smart Agribusiness programme (NUTEC) (2014 to 2022)	Increasing resilience to climate change, accelerating economic transformation and raising the incomes of poor people in northern Uganda. Enabled over 170,000 households in northern Uganda to increase their income by at least 15%, benefitting around 900,000 individuals; and 2.2 million individuals to better adapt to the effects of climate change.	Total value: £44 million Spend in FY 2022 to 2023: £0 million. No spend in financial year 2023 to 2024.
Strengthening Education Systems for Improved Learning (SESIL) (2016 to 2023)	Post-COVID-19 recovery of foundational skills. Over 300,000 children will have benefitted from Community Led Learning classes.	Total value: £42 million Spend in financial year 2022 to 2023: £7 million. Planned spend in financial year 2023 to 2024: £1 million
Expanding Social Protection in Uganda Phase II (ESP II) (2015 to 2022)	Embedding social protection in national policy, programmes, and budgets. Supported the GoU to ensure an effective national roll-out of the Senior Citizens’ Grant to an eligible population of 439,069 older persons.	Total value: £42 million No spend in financial year 2022 to 2023 or 2023 to 2024

Significant FCDO centrally or regionally managed programmes include:

• tackling Deadly Diseases in Africa II programme (TDDAP II), which will strengthen pandemic preparedness and response, particularly through: increasing Uganda’s capabilities in disease surveillance at border posts; surveillance of zoonotic diseases and their likelihood of crossing species to humans; and building the health workforce’s ability to detect and manage infectious diseases
• accelerating Action to End Child Marriage Phase II, which will tackle child marriage and violence against children through enhancing partnerships
• Africa Regional Climate and Nature programme (ARCAN). Under this programme, the Weather and Climate Information Services (WISER) Africa component focuses on mainstreaming weather and climate information services into policy, planning and decision making at all levels
• transforming Access to Climate Finance Programme, aimed at accelerating climate finance to countries like Uganda, including supporting the Climate Finance Unit in the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development
• Least Developed Countries Initiative for Effective Adaptation & Resilience (LIFE-AR), aimed at building in-country institutions, capacity and systems to deliver climate resilience over time with a focus on decentralised climate financing

Other UK Government departments also support development in Uganda, including:

• the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs’ Illegal Wildlife Trade Challenge Fund and Darwin Initiative support a number of programmes aimed at tackling the illegal wildlife trade (IWT) and biodiversity and the natural environment. The Ministry of Defence also supports training of Uganda Wildlife Authority rangers to counter the IWT
• the Department for Net Zero and Energy Security has co-funded GET FiT renewable energy infrastructure, adding clean energy to the national grid.

Under UK Research and Innovation:

• the Medical Research Council has been working with the Uganda Virus Research Institute for 35 years, now as the MRC/UVRI & LSHTM Uganda Research Unit – an internationally recognized centre of excellence for research and training on HIV/AIDS and other infections and diseases (NCDs) that has over 40 ongoing research collaborative projects with at least 11 UK universities

• Innovate UK’s Energy Catalyst programme has funded 9 projects in Uganda. The programme aims to accelerate the innovation needed to end energy poverty, through financial and advisory support, and by building strategic partnerships and uncovering new insights

HM Revenue & Customs is providing technical assistance to the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) using a peer-to-peer capacity building model to strengthen:

• technical and behavioural competency frameworks for service delivery

• tax investigation, with emphasis on cybercrime, e-commerce/online sales as well as illicit finance

• voluntary disclosure (VD) to ensure that Uganda uses VD legislation effectively to increase tax revenue

• Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI). Looking at the international standards for tax transparency and supporting URA to develop AEOI secondary legislation

The UK is also:

• a major contributor to key multilateral institutions in Uganda including, the World Bank, IMF, GAVI (the Vaccine Alliance) , Global Fund, GPE, Education Cannot Wait, WFP, UNICEF, UNHCR and WHO

• a significant investor through the British Investment Partnership portfolio, which through British International Investment, Private Infrastructure for Development Group (PIDG) and UK Export Finance has over £800 million invested in Uganda

Financial information

Initial allocations have been set internally to deliver the priorities set out in the International Development Strategy (May 2022) and the Integrated Review Refresh 2023, based on the FCDO’s Spending Review 2021 settlement.

The department’s spending plans for the period 2022 to 2023 to 2024 to 2025 have been revisited to ensure His Majesty’s Government continues to spend around 0.5% of Gross National Income (GNI) on ODA. This was in the context of the significant and unexpected costs incurred to support the people of Ukraine and Afghanistan escape oppression and conflict and find refuge in the UK, and others seeking asylum. The Government provided additional resources of £1 billion in 2022 to 2023 and £1.5 billion in 2023 to 2024 to help meet these unanticipated costs. The Government remains committed to returning ODA spending to 0.7% of GNI when the fiscal situation allows, in line with the approach confirmed by the House of Commons in July 2021.

The Country Development Partnership Summaries include the breakdown of programme budgets allocated to individual countries for 2023 to 2024 and 2024 to 2025. These allocations are indicative and subject to revision as, by its nature, the department’s work is dynamic. Programme allocations are continually reviewed to respond to changing global needs, including humanitarian crises, fluctuations in GNI and other ODA allocation decisions.

It should be noted that these figures do not reflect the full range of UK ODA spending in these individual countries as they do not include spend delivered via core contributions to multilateral organisations, or regional programmes delivered by the FCDO’s central departments. Other UK Government departments also spend a large amount of ODA overseas. Details of ODA spent by other UK government departments can be found in their Annual Report and Accounts and the Statistics for International Development.

FCDO Bilateral ODA allocation

Allocated ODA budget financial year 2023 to 2024: £18.3 million

Indicative ODA budget financial year 2024 to 2025: £57 million

Expected FCDO bilateral ODA spend by sector

Figure 1. Financial year 2023 to 2024: Refugee Response/Humanitarian, 43%; Climate Smart Economic Development, 24%; Maternal Health and SRHR, 24%; Other, 8%.

Of FCDO bilateral ODA programmes in Uganda in financial year 2022 to 2023, 100% are marked as principally or significantly focused on promoting gender equality, and 80% are marked as principally or significantly focused on promoting disability.

Supporting information sources

• British High Commission, Kampala
• Development Tracker Uganda summary
• Development-portal Uganda page
• FCDO published Evaluations and Management Responses

1. IMF World Economic Outlook: https://www.imf.org/external/datamapper/profile/UGA. Accessed 22 May 2023. GDP per capita at current prices has risen from $247 in 1993 to £1110 in 2023, an increase of 349%. ↩

2. World Bank data: https://data.worldbank.org/topic/poverty?end=2019&locations=UG&start=1989. Accessed 22 May 2023. Poverty headcount ratio at $2.15 a day (2017 PPP) fell from 65.9% in 1992 to 42.4% in 2019, a fall of 36%. ↩

3. World Bank Country Overview: https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/uganda/overview. Accessed 22 May 2023. ↩

4. World Bank Uganda Poverty Assessment: https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2023/05/11/uganda-afe-can-reduce-poverty-by-building-people-s-resilience-to-shocks-says-world-bank-report. Accessed 24 May 2023. ↩

5. World Bank Country Overview: https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/uganda/overview. Accessed 22 May 2023. ↩

6. Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, Debt Sustainability Analysis Report: https://mepd.finance.go.ug/documents/DSA/DSA-FY202122.pdf (PDF, 4.31MB). Accessed 29 May 2023 ↩

7. UN World Population Prospects: https://population.un.org/wpp/. Custom search, 22 May 2023. ↩

8. World Bank Human Capital Project: https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/human-capital#Index. Accessed 22 May 2023. ↩

9. World Economic Forum Global Gender Gap: https://www.weforum.org/reports/global-gender-gap-report-2022/in-full. Accessed 22 May 2023. ↩

10. Notre Dame Global Adaptation Initiative: https://gain.nd.edu/our-work/country-index/rankings/. Accessed 22 May 2023. ↩

11. UNHCR: https://data2.unhcr.org/en/country/uga. Accessed 22 May 2023. ↩

12. Department for Business and Trade Factsheet: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1156545/uganda-trade-and-investment-factsheet-2023-05-18.pdf (PDF, 516.86KB). Accessed 22 May 2023. ↩

13. Expanding Social Protection II programme: https://devtracker.fcdo.gov.uk/projects/GB-1-204861/summary. ↩

14. Reducing High Fertility Rates and Improving Sexual Reproductive Health Outcomes in Uganda programme: https://devtracker.fcdo.gov.uk/projects/GB-1-204633/summary; Ugandan Ministry of Health Annual Health Sector Performance Report, 2021-22. ↩

15. On and Off Grid Small Scale Renewable Energy in Uganda programme: https://devtracker.fcdo.gov.uk/projects/GB-1-203624/summary. ↩

16. Note – figures are rounded to the nearest £1 million ↩