Waragi moonshine epidemic - UGANDA - Children on the Edge

This project documents the illegal production of a moonshine called Waragi or 'War Gin', which is widely available throughout Uganda.

The illegal production of hard liquor is a problem across much of Africa, but it may be at its worst in Uganda.  It is a surprising statistic — according to the World Health Organisation, Ugandan drinkers consume 23.7 litres of alcohol per capita each year and 89 percent of this alcohol is unregulated, home-brewed and illegally sold. Production of this crude, homemade alcohol has mushroomed in recent years causing an unknown quantity of social damage, an increase in mental health and blindness cases, as well as hundreds of deaths.

The most popular home-brew is a hard liquor called waragi, which can contain as much as 40 percent pure ethanol, as well as other unidentified impurities. Alcohol has been identified as a key driver and maintainer of chronic poverty in Uganda, with some observers estimating the economic and social costs to be worse than those of HIV and malaria.