Arms and conflict

The security situation in the Karamoja region is unique, due to open conflict between the government and tribes being forcefully disarmed. On-going competition between tribes to protect cattle or rustle the neighbours, also contributes to an arms race.

The massive influx of automatic weapons (AK-47 and newer models) since the late 1970s has deeply transformed traditional local practices:

The character, scope and consequences of cattle raiding across tribes have changed. Next to cattle raiding per se, smaller scale theft of cattle and of small livestock has soared.

The prevalence of armed violence in Karamoja has to be put in perspective together with other factors of vulnerability (climate change, deforestation, demographic boom, etc.) in order to fully evaluate the current crisis in the region as well as the preoccupying prospects for the next decade if the vicious circle of these interrelated trends is not broken.

The presence of weapons also contributes to arms trafficking at a regional level, involving neighbouring countries and generating protracted conflicts, such as South-Sudan and Somalia.