More than half of Uganda’s population, 53.1%, continues to experience multidimensional poverty, with significant disparities across regions, according to the latest Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) Census Monograph 2025 released by the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS).
The MPI, which measures poverty across health, education, living standards, and access to basic services, provides a more comprehensive view than traditional income-based measures.
It captures the simultaneous deprivations individuals face in daily life, from lack of clean water and electricity to limited schooling and health coverage.
According to the report, Karamoja remains the most affected region with an MPI of 0.569, nearly seven times higher than Kampala’s 0.088.
Other regions with high poverty levels include West Nile and the Northern Region, while the Central and Western regions recorded comparatively lower MPI scores.
The MPI also highlighted structural inequalities. Female-headed households, rural households, and those led by individuals with little or no formal education experienced significantly higher levels of deprivation.
Households without health insurance, reliant on traditional cooking fuels, or lacking improved toilet facilities were among the most affected.
“Multidimensional poverty in Uganda is primarily driven by limited access to basic services, which contributes between 30.6% and 38.8% of observed poverty across sub-regions,” the report noted.
Education, while the least contributing factor overall, accounted for 28% of poverty in Karamoja, underscoring persistent regional disparities.
UBOS recommended urgent interventions to reduce deprivation, including expanding access to clean energy, implementing universal health insurance, investing in water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) infrastructure, strengthening employment and livelihood opportunities, and improving national data collection to guide evidence-based policies.
The national MPI for Uganda stands at 0.270. Kaabong District recorded the highest MPI at 0.639, while Kampala had the lowest at 0.088. Female-headed households had an MPI of 0.289 compared to 0.262 for male-headed households.
Households led by individuals with no formal education recorded an MPI of 0.435.
UBOS urged policymakers, development partners, and stakeholders to leverage the findings to design targeted interventions to alleviate poverty and improve living standards.
The report forms part of Uganda’s commitment to Sustainable Development Goal 1 (SDG 1): End poverty in all its forms everywhere, emphasizing the need to address poverty beyond income alone.
