Catchment-based planning is being implemented in the Karamoja subregion of Uganda since 2016. It is a new approach that mirrors similar interventions taken up by the Ugandan government in different parts of the country. It broadly reflects a wider commitment to institutionalizing Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) throughout the country. However, the Karamoja subregion faces substantial challenges.
These include the complex relationships between resource availability, access and use in Karamoja and its neighboring counties, including the substantially drier Turkana County in Kenya to the East. The inherent potential for contestation and conflict over resources requires careful adoption of new water structures. A checklist-based approach is recommended to face these challenges.