The 2016 Uganda Demographic and Health Survey (2016 UDHS) was implemented by the Uganda Bureau of Statistics. The survey sample was designed to provide estimates of population and health indicators including fertility and child mortality rates for the country as a whole, for the urban and rural areas separately, and for each of the 15 regions in Uganda (South Central, North Central, Busoga, Kampala, Lango, Acholi, Tooro, Bunyoro, Bukedi, Bugisu, Karamoja, Teso, Kigezi, Ankole, and West Nile).
The primary objective of the 2016 UDHS project is to provide up-to-date estimates of basic demographic and health indicators. Specifically, the 2016 UDHS collected information on:
• Key demographic indicators, particularly fertility and under-5, adult, and maternal mortality rates
• Direct and indirect factors that determine levels of and trends in fertility and child mortality
• Contraceptive knowledge and practice
• Key aspects of maternal and child health, including immunisation coverage among children, prevalence and treatment of diarrhoea and other diseases among children under age 5, and maternity care indicators such as antenatal visits and assistance at delivery
• Child feeding practices, including breastfeeding, and anthropometric measures to assess the nutritional status of women, men, and children
• Knowledge and attitudes of women and men about sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and HIV/AIDS, potential exposure to the risk of HIV infection (risk behaviours and condom use), and coverage of HIV testing and counselling (HTC) and other key HIV/AIDS programmes
• Anaemia in women, men, and children
• Malaria prevalence in children as a follow-up to the 2014-15 Uganda Malaria Indicator Survey
• Vitamin A deficiency (VAD) in children
• Key education indicators, including school attendance ratios, level of educational attainment, and literacy levels
• The extent of disability
• Early childhood development
• The extent of gender-based violence
The information collected through the 2016 UDHS is intended to assist policymakers and program managers in evaluating and designing programs and strategies for improving the health of the country’s population.