KARAMOJA SUB-REGION. At least 30 learners with nodding syndrome in Alune primary school in Kitgum district Karamoja sub-region have abandoned school as hunger bites harder. 449 learners are enrolled at Alune primary school in Labongo Akwang and 30 of them are nodding syndrome patients.
Last term,the school authorities introduced a school feeding program as a measure of keeping the learners in the school where each learner is supposed to take 10 kilograms of beans, 15 kilograms of maize flour and 3000 shilling for buying the ingredients,but the initiative hit a dead end due to the prolonged drought in the first season of this year leading to poor crop yields,and harder for the parents to raise the food items. The school authorities say all the 30 learners affected by nodding condition have abandoned school due to hunger.
John Okura, the school deputy head teacher explained that some parents had failed to embrace the initiative and the situation was worsened by the poor crop yields since even those who had embraced it are unable to raise the food stuff. Parents/guardians have now been advised to start packing food for their children to enable them stay in school.
Bosco Oringa, a parent of two children with nodding disease syndrome is one of the most affected, unable to feed his family which worsened the condition of these children since they could not get enough food.
According to Mark Ruangakene, the Labongo Akwang sub county chairperson, the sub county has a total of 400 children suffering from the nodding syndrome. The district has now resorted to mobilising resources from the community to support the affected schools. Due to hunger, thousands of learners in the district are abandoning school and resorting to hunting for wild fruits.
The nodding syndrome was first recognized in Uganda in 1997; however, fully pledged national response program against the syndrome only commenced in March 2012. Over 3000 children have been affected by the nodding syndrome epidemic in northern Uganda, with an estimated case fatality rate of 6.7%.

Fred Owot, the district education officer is also worried that the disaster will affect the academic performance of the district, appealing to the responsible government ministry and stakeholders to come to the rescue of the learners by providing the area with relief food.
Currently, government is distributing relief food to Karamoja sub-region following reports of the death of dozens of people due to hunger in the area.
Other regions in the country have also registered poor crop yields due to the prolonged drought putting the country in a risk of food crisis.

In western Uganda and other parts of the cattle corridor,farmers are decrying scarcity of water and pasture for their animals.