Uganda is emerging as a major destination and transit country for migrants in the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) region, with more than 1.2 million people entering the country and 1.3 million leaving in 2022, according to a regional migration report.
The IGAD Population and Migration Statistics Report, Second Edition, published in July 2025, shows that non-residents consistently accounted for the majority of people crossing Uganda’s borders, underscoring the country’s growing importance in regional migration flows.
Data from the Ministry of Internal Affairs cited in the report show that Uganda recorded 1,211,861 arrivals and 1,300,001 departures in 2022. Of the arrivals, 814,508 were non-residents, compared with 397,353 residents. Among those departing, 790,746 were non-residents, while 509,255 were residents.
The report says the dominance of non-resident crossings was not unique to 2022.
“Throughout the period under review, non-resident border crossings consistently outnumbered those by residents,” the report states, adding that the pattern demonstrates Uganda’s “continued role as a significant destination and transit country within the region.”
Uganda emerges as a key destination and transit country
Border movements and reported trafficking cases show the scale and protection challenges associated with migration.
Uganda’s border movements — 2022
Residents vs non-residents
Reported human trafficking cases
Reported trafficking cases increased from 214 in 2020 to 1,200 in 2022. Children accounted for 532 cases — about 44% of the total.
The wider IGAD picture
The trend predates the Covid-19 pandemic. In 2016, Uganda recorded more than 1.8 million arrivals, including about 1.3 million non-residents, while departures stood at nearly 1.9 million, with more than 1.3 million involving non-residents.
Cross-border movements subsequently fell sharply in 2020 after governments imposed restrictions to contain the spread of Covid-19.
Movement began to recover in 2021, when Uganda recorded about 722,000 arrivals and 866,000 departures. By 2022, arrivals had risen to more than 1.2 million, while departures reached 1.3 million.
The report attributes the decline in 2019 and 2020 largely to Covid-19 travel restrictions, which curtailed cross-border mobility. However, the expansion of migration is taking place amid concerns over the ability of governments in the region to monitor movements and respond to protection risks.
IGAD notes that migration data remain limited and fragmented across the region, making it difficult to establish comprehensive migration patterns and effectively respond to irregular migration, trafficking and other associated risks.
Only Uganda, Ethiopia and South Sudan provided partial time-series data on irregular migration and related protection risks, while Uganda, Kenya and South Sudan provided data on cross-border movements.
“While data availability remains limited, with only Uganda, Ethiopia, and South Sudan providing partial time series data, the findings revealed some trends, particularly the vulnerability of youth and women to irregular migration,” the report says.
Trafficking cases rise
Uganda’s migration profile is also marked by a sharp increase in reported human trafficking cases.
According to the report, cases rose from 421 in 2021 to 1,200 in 2022, with children accounting for 532 cases, or about 44 per cent. Adults accounted for the remaining 668 cases.
The figures represent more than a fourfold increase from 286 cases recorded in 2018, although the trend was uneven. Reported cases fell from 286 in 2018 to 252 in 2019 and 214 in 2020 before rising to 421 in 2021 and 1,200 in 2022.
IGAD links the decline in 2020 partly to restrictions on movement during the Covid-19 pandemic, while the subsequent increase highlights the protection risks associated with expanding mobility.
“Alarmingly, children were involved in nearly half of these trafficking cases,” the report states, warning of the severe impact on vulnerable groups and the need for targeted interventions.
Labour exploitation emerged as the predominant form of trafficking in 2020 and 2021, according to the report, suggesting that trafficking patterns can shift in response to changing socio-economic conditions.
IGAD says the increase in trafficking is linked to low employment levels, poverty and other socio-economic pressures that increase people’s vulnerability to exploitation.
Complex regional migration
Uganda’s experience forms part of a broader regional trend in which migration is increasing while governments struggle to strengthen systems for tracking population movements.
The report estimates that the number of international migrants in the IGAD region rose from 4.1 million in 2013 to 6.8 million in 2022, representing a 65.9 per cent increase over the period.
The number of working-age international migrants increased from 2.7 million to 4.3 million, while the region had about 2.5 million migrant workers in 2022.
The region is also dealing with large-scale forced displacement. By the end of 2022, IGAD countries were hosting about 4.3 million refugees, equivalent to roughly one in every six refugees globally.
Women and children constituted a significant share of refugee and asylum-seeking populations, adding to the protection challenges facing the region. Irregular migration, meanwhile, continues to disproportionately affect young people and increasingly women.
In South Sudan, the report notes, men consistently accounted for more than 75 per cent of irregular migrants. However, the proportion of women increased from 8 per cent in 2018 to 25 per cent in 2022.
IGAD says the trends reflect deeper socio-economic pressures as well as political instability, economic disparities, climate-related shocks and environmental degradation, which are increasingly shaping migration decisions across the region.