Uganda: Farmers in Acholi Advised to Delay Second Season Planting After Failed Harvest

What the report says

AllAfrica, carrying a report by The Independent (Kampala), reported on 23 July 2026 that farmers in Uganda’s Acholi sub-region have been advised to delay planting for the second agricultural season because the current dry spell is expected to continue until the end of August. The warning follows widespread first-season crop failure in northern Uganda, where many households rely on rain-fed farming for food and income.

George William Omony, principal meteorologist at the Department of Meteorology under the Ministry of Water and Environment, said recent scattered showers in parts of Acholi were too limited and irregular to support planting. He cautioned that seeds planted now could be lost because soils have not retained enough moisture for germination and early crop growth. Farmers were advised to prepare gardens while waiting for more reliable rainfall.

The report said the ministry’s July 2026 Monthly Weather Update forecast below-average rainfall across much of Uganda, with northern areas likely to receive only occasional light showers and warmer-than-normal temperatures. Local leaders have linked the failed harvests to worsening hunger, with district chairpersons from Acholi appealing for emergency food relief. The article cited Lamwo District Chairperson Sisto Oyet Ocen as saying eight people had died from hunger-related illnesses and 126 others had been admitted with malnutrition, while Agago leaders reported suspected hunger-related deaths.

The Independent also reported Omony’s explanation that a rapidly developing El Niño, associated with unusually warm equatorial Pacific sea temperatures, had suppressed the June-August rains. Although a regional forecast indicated northern Uganda could receive above-normal rainfall in late July, meteorologists warned that short-term showers may still be too localized or interrupted to create safe planting conditions.