Health
Ugandan Legislators applaud MakSPH for Road Safety & Injuries Research
Members of Parliament under the Parliamentary Forum on Road Safety (PAFROS) have commended research efforts by the Makerere University School of Public Health’s Trauma and Disability Unit (TRIAD) for its leadership in injury and prevention research. The legislators signed a commitment to support all efforts aimed at improving road safety in Uganda.
The legislators said this while at an engagement meeting with researchers at MakSPH that took place on Thursday 17th February 2022 at Sheraton Hotel. In a well-attended session, the research team shared evidence from a number of publications that have influenced policy, and over 10-11 years, and the several achievements the School has achieved in collaboration with partners both national and international.
The 2014 WHO Global Health Estimates show high burden of injuries with over five million people dying of injuries every year. Mr. Frederick Oporia, a PhD fellow says nearly every six seconds, someone dies from an injury leaving over 50 million people with disabilities.
Despite this, there is insufficient research capacity to drive prevention and management of these injuries which makes multidisciplinary approach in handling multidisciplinary nature of injuries.
TRIAD’s main objective is to contribute to the reduction of injury burden in Uganda by strengthening research capacity on injuries and their medical, social and economic consequences both at Individual, community and National level.
There are various kinds of injuries that range from being intentional and non-intentional. Some of these include violence, burns, poisoning, drowning, falls and road traffic crashes. In all these injuries, road traffic contributes the highest burden 24% hence a big problem.
Currently, TRIAD focuses on mobility, Road Traffic Injury prevention, drowning prevention, childhood injury prevention and emergency Trauma Care and emergency medical services.
“When we compare HIV, tuberculosis and Malaria rates, we see that injuries alone almost double what these other Disease claim and it’s a problem we need to tackle,” says Oporia.
Goal 3 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) seeks to ensure health and well-being for all, at every stage of life. Equally so, the UN Decade of Action included road safety in the framework of Sustainable Development Goals with an ambition to halve road traffic deaths and injuries by 2020.
The 2011-2020 decade of action for road safety was premised on five pillars that included road safety management, safer roads and mobility, safer vehicles, safer road users, and post-crash response.
However, trends analysis in the Uganda Police Reports show that Uganda instead increased road traffic crashes. The SDG Goal 11 that commits UN member States to make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable ambitiously states that by 2030, the member states should be able to provide access to safe, affordable, accessible and sustainable transport systems for all, improving road safety, notably by expanding public transport, with special attention to the needs of those in vulnerable situations, women, children, persons with disabilities and older persons.
The Road safety performance review report of 2018 show that Uganda’s road safety management is managed in the Ministry of Works and Transport under the Directorate of Road Transport. Some of the road transport legislations include, the Traffic and Road Safety Act (Amended) 2020, the Uganda National Roads Authority Act, 2006, the Uganda Road Fund Act, 2008, the National Road Safety Policy, 2014 and the Non-Motorized Transport policy, 2012.
Speaking to the legislators, Esther Bayiga Zziwa, a PhD fellow at MakSPH’s TRIAD unit says however that Uganda has legislative gaps in majority of the risk factors for instance, while Uganda has national drink-driving law in place, and drink – driving based on Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) or equivalent breath alcohol concentration (BrAC), the BAC limit for the general population is way higher than the global standard. The global standard is at below 5 gram per blood liter. However, in Uganda, the law puts it at 7 gram per blood liter which is high. Ms. Bayiga says there is a need to handle this back to the global level.
Uganda has a national motorcycle helmet law in place which applies to motorcycle drivers and adult passengers and to all road types an engine type. However, the law does not require helmets to be properly fastened as well as meet the national and or international standards.
“Helmets standards for motorcyclists put up by Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) need to make sure that those ones on market meet the standards and if you are found wearing a fake helmet, you are not better off than one not wearing any because in case of a crash, it will damage your head instead of protecting it, and people need to fasten their Helmets for better effectiveness,” says Bayiga.
Research on road safety has found that behaviour interventions area not as effective as environmental, legislative and enforcement actions. Bayiga says the Behavioural component alone cannot be effective. She recommends a multipronged approach that includes bbehavioural, environmental modification, enforcement and legislation in road safety regulation.
Uganda lacks a national child restraint law based on age, weight, height or a combination of these factors that would restrict children under a certain age-height from sitting in the front seat.
“In Uganda, even here in Kampala, those who can afford cars do not buy child safety seats for their babies and the children are carried by other adults and do not have a seat on their own. However, in case of a clash, those are the first ones that fall off the car because of their body mass and can’t survive with the normal seat,” Bayiga says.
According to Bayiga, other countries have the regulations but; “Our law does not take account any with regarding children, and probably some people think cannot afford, but this can not be compared to the lives and value of children, they too need safe seat because every life matters and a law should be put in place to address this.”
Hon. Linda Irene Mugisa, the Fort portal City Woman MP and member of the Road Safety Forum acknowledges the role of legislators to make laws and policies that would protect Ugandans.
“We have a big role of sensitizing the masses. Right now, we have very many youths who are earning income through riding boda-bodas. And the unfortunate part of this is that most of these youths have not gone through training and most of them are riding illegally because some cannot afford the driving permits. As members of parliament we feel we should advocate for the reduction in the amount of money a rider requires in order to acquire a driving permit,” says Hon. Linda.
Juliet Bashiisha Agasha, the Woman MP for Mitooma District said she was impressed by the dialogue and was excited to learn that indeed, the Trauma, Injury and Disability Unit at Makerere University School of Public Health was the only unit in Uganda that focuses on research of injury and prevention.
According to Hon. Agasha, there are many unqualified drivers on Uganda’s road who commit a lot of traffic offenses and sometimes walk away without punishment due to lack of monitoring systems. She also says most drivers lack good training and that some simply acquire driving permits without ever going to the driving schools.
“If we can have the measures that can monitor whoever makes a mistake, and then they charge accordingly, I know as Ugandans, we fear fines very much. The moment they fine you today, I don’t think tomorrow you can repeat the same mistake,” says Hon. Agasha.
She advocates for more cameras to track traffic crimes in order to improve road safety. “In fact, you find someone who is driving without a seatbelt and when he senses a traffic person, that is when he remembers that seatbelts are supposed to be used. So there is a lot of effort that we have to put in in order to reduce on road accidents especially on these motorcycles. You find a big group of motorcycles driving when there are red lights and they don’t mind whether there is red or green for them they keep moving. But if they can be controlled or sensitized about dangers of a vehicle that coming from a different direction, I believe we can reduce on the road accidents,” says Hon. Agasha.
The MP for Iki-Iki County in Budaka district, Robert Kasolo agrees that using technology in enforcement of traffic order is the way to go. He expresses concern that cameras in Uganda are largely not for road traffic law enforcement but for security reasons. “But I think that would be the ideal situation. In developed countries, cameras are part of the gadgets for enforcing traffic laws. We need to move in that direction. Policemen cannot be everywhere. But a camera can record a wider area and can be a source of evidence,” says Hon. Kasolo, who also doubles as Vice Chairperson of the Physical Infrastructure Committee of Parliament.
Tonny Ayo, the Member of Parliament for Kwania County, and Vice chairperson Parliamentary committee on Road Safety wants the Uganda Police Traffic department to begin to use the cameras both within the cities and high ways to bring drivers to book.
“One of our concerns of ensuring that people follow the traffic regulations and laws is that government put in place the cameras on streets and highways and we have spent money on this and the purpose was not only to deal with crime and terrorism but one of them was enforcement of traffic rules and regulations which unfortunately as a Forum as parliament and a public are wondering why government cannot come up to enforce this,” says Hon. Ayo.
He opines that; “When you drive along highways and roads within Kampala, the reckless driving of high speed, the bad overtaking, we expected that cameras could take stock of what is happening. We are calling on government to move in to ask police to begin to use these cameras to enforce the laws.”
According to Hon. Ayo, using video and pictorial evidence from the cameras, government will go a long way in collecting huge non-tax revenue through fines of traffic offenders.
“If we do this consistently for 6 months, then we are going to see discipline by the motorist in in this country and I think by the decade plan of action we were supposed to have reduced road crashes and injuries in the country by half by 2020. Now we are in 2022, and instead of reducing, the crashes and injuries have increased. That means now we need to act because we have noticed that sensitization and talking to people,” says Hon. Ayo.
Dr. Olive Chifefe Kobusingye, an accident & emergency surgeon, injury epidemiologist at MakSPH says TRIAD’s biggest concern is road safety and accessible for all road users. She ads that this can be achieved through good road designs.
“Designing for all road users not just for motorists. Making sure that there is space to accommodate pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists and accommodate those that are using wheel chairs for instance and to pay attention to the size of the population so that we in the design cater for heavy pedestrian presence, those spaces are adequate for them,” says Dr. Kobusingye.
In addition to the design, Dr. Kobusingye also agrees with the legislators on the need to increase enforcement of traffic regulations in Uganda to ensure road safety.
“There are areas where we need to enforce for instance where there is limited access to motorized traffic. These are all provided for in the non-motorized transport policy. So, the implementation of that policy is key to ensuring that transportation is safe, its accessible, its affordable and that its equitable that we do not prioritize certain types of road users over others,” Dr. Kobusingye observes.
Health
Professor Nakimuli awarded at FIGO Congress for outstanding contribution to Women and Child Health
Kampala, Uganda – Makerere University School of Public Health (MakSPH) and Estonia’s Tallinn University of Technology (TalTech) have launched a two-year collaborative project to transform health informatics education and practice in Uganda, positioning the country as a regional leader in digital health. Unveiled earlier this month at MakSPH and supported by the Estonian Centre for International Development (ESTDEV), the initiative aims to build a skilled digital health workforce and accelerate Uganda’s transition to a data-driven health system, while aligning the country’s digital agenda with global best practices through partnership.
This strategic collaboration builds on the success of MakSPH’s Master of Health Informatics (MHI) programme. The MHI is one of the eight master’s degrees hosted at the School and was first introduced in 2016, jointly delivered with Makerere University College of Computing and Information Sciences (Mak-CoCIS). The two-year graduate training equips students with skills in health information systems design, data analytics, and digital health leadership through a hybrid model of face-to-face, online, and self-paced learning. So far, since its inception, nearly 50 graduates have completed the programme, many of whom have now gone on to lead national and regional health data initiatives. In August last month, the School received 26 new entrants for the MHI 2025/2026 cohort, reflecting its rising demand.
Now, the new project, launched on September 9, 2025, links TalTech’s MSc in Digital Health, one of Europe’s pioneering programmes introduced in 2009, with MakSPH’s Master of Health Informatics to strengthen curricula, mentor faculty, and give students exposure to global best practices. The goal is to create a skilled workforce capable of leading Uganda’s digital health transformation. The initiative is co-led by Prof. Peeter Ross, Professor of e-Health at TalTech, and Prof. Nazarius M. Tumwesigye, Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at MakSPH. They are joined by Doris Kaljuste, Programme Director of the MSc in Digital Health, and Mr. Michael Anywar, Doctoral Student at TalTech and the initiator of the collaboration, as well as Ms. Irene Wanyana, MHI Programme Coordinator and PhD Candidate at Karolinska Institute, Sweden, and Mr. Chris A. Balwanaki, the Coordinator for the project at MakSPH.
Prof. Ross, a leading global authority on e-health and head of the Digital Health Research Unit at Tallinn University of Technology, commenting on the project and the link between health and technology, stressed that while health itself is not technology, the intelligent integration of digital tools is indispensable for making healthcare more efficient, affordable, and accessible. He underscored that this collaboration marks a key step in that direction, with capacity development and academic exchange key to sustainable digital transformation.
“Capacity building is critical. In Estonia, when the nationwide health information system was being launched, about a third of the budget went into training healthcare professionals. This required training trainers first, underscoring the strategic role of academia. Estonia has a master’s programme in digital health, while Makerere University offers a blended Master of Health Informatics. Together, these programmes can expand training across Uganda and beyond,” Prof. Ross explained, adding that the collaboration also gives Estonia the chance to test digital health solutions in a large, English-speaking population, while Uganda benefits from Estonia’s decades of experience and avoids common pitfalls.
Estonia, a Northern European country currently with about 1.37 million people and covering a total area of 45,339 km², is seen as one of Europe’s leaders in digital innovation. About 99 per cent of its public services are reportedly delivered online, and its health information system records nearly every citizen’s medical history from birth to death. The X-Road platform in the country enables secure, encrypted data exchange, while e-prescriptions cover almost all prescriptions nationwide. Meanwhile, the Digilugu.ee patient portal allows citizens to access their health records, track activity logs, and even generate certificates, a system widely trusted by users. The Estonian team revealed that the integrated digital health ecosystem shows how technology, governance, and policy work together to provide efficient, patient-centred care.
Conversely, Uganda’s growing digital ecosystem makes the timing of the collaboration strategic. The country currently has more than 43 million mobile subscriptions, over 26 million internet users, and more than 33 million mobile money accounts, creating fertile ground for scaling digital health solutions. With this, strengthening health informatics will build a skilled workforce needed to design, implement, and manage these solutions effectively.
The MakSPH Project Co-lead, Prof. Tumwesigye, hailed the partnership as a turning point for the MHI programme, noting that modules such as Health Analytics are being upgraded to give students hands-on experience in developing tools to digitise public and private health systems. He said Estonia’s model, where digital innovations are widely adopted and lead to measurable improvements, offers a blueprint Uganda can adapt to move beyond paper-based systems, improve data quality, and train graduates to design solutions that strengthen health outcomes.
“Uganda is still behind in digital health use. We rely heavily on paper-based systems, experience long delays in transmitting data from primary health facilities to the national level, and face issues with data quality, including missing or inaccurate figures. Strengthening our programme will help address these challenges and produce graduates who can design solutions that lead to better health outcomes. Learning from TalTech University and Estonia’s digital health success will help us put Uganda on a better footing for the future,” Prof. Tumwesigye observed, noting that Estonia’s model stands out for ensuring digital innovations are widely adopted and deliver measurable improvements in health system performance.
The Programme Coordinator, Ms. Irene Wanyana, noted that since its launch in 2016, the Health Informatics training at Makerere University has made a strong impact, earning a reputation as one of the leading graduate programmes of its kind in the region. She observed that faculty members and students have been instrumental in designing, developing, and supporting national health information systems critical to Uganda’s health sector. These include UgandaEMR, an advanced electronic medical record system now deployed in more than 1,700 health facilities; the Weekly Stock Status System, which enables real-time tracking of essential medical commodities; and the Early Infant Diagnosis Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS), which improves the management of HIV testing data for infants.
Still, the programme has contributed to the development of PrEP and DREAMS/OVC tracking systems, supporting HIV prevention and care for vulnerable populations such as adolescent girls, young women, and children. The graduate training has also strengthened national HIV surveillance through the Centralised Blood Screening (CBS) dashboard, advanced the Uganda Health Information Exchange Platform to improve interoperability, and facilitated the migration of critical health data systems into the Ministry of Health’s national data centres, continuing to ensure that health information is secure, reliable, and accessible nationwide.
Ms. Wanyana is optimistic that with the new collaboration with TalTech University in Estonia, MakSPH’s Health Informatics programme is poised to deliver even greater innovations and impact to transform Uganda’s digital health system. In September 2024, four of our MHI students, Mr. Edwin Ayebare, Mr. Brian Twesigye, Mr. Enock Mwesigwa, and Mr. Iving Mumbere, won a global Award of Distinction at the Open Group India Awards for Innovation & Excellence in New Delhi. Competing against 22 university teams worldwide, they were recognised for their innovative application of enterprise architecture to address real-world health system challenges, attesting to Makerere University’s global competitiveness.
Speaking at the launch event, H.E. Girisch M. Nair, Honorary Consul of Estonia to Uganda, emphasised that Estonia’s experience offers Uganda a practical blueprint for building interoperable systems, standardising health data, and strengthening national health information infrastructure. “This collaboration is a platform for us to aspire more. Imagine a patient in Bundibugyo with a secure digital ID linked to their electronic health record. Wherever they go, authorised health workers can access their records, prescriptions are issued electronically, and medicines are dispensed at registered pharmacies. This generates rich, actionable data that helps plan better, reduce waste, and improve health outcomes.”
There is evidence of the Estonian Consul’s remarks. A new study conducted in 2023 by a team from Makerere University School of Public Health, led by Assoc. Prof. Peter Waiswa, published this September in BMJ Global Health, confirmed that supporting Ugandan districts to adopt digital payments significantly improved the efficiency of mass vaccination campaigns in the country, reducing delays, cutting administrative bottlenecks, and enhancing transparency. The findings from this and similar multi-country studies by the same team show that with targeted support, cashless systems are both feasible and practical for strengthening public health.
For Mr. Jamiru Mpiima, an alumnus of MakSPH and graduate of the Health Informatics programme, these developments underscore the critical need for a skilled workforce to design, implement, and manage digital health systems effectively. Speaking on behalf of Mr. Paul Mbaka, Head of the Division of Health Information at Uganda’s Ministry of Health, Mr. Mpiima shared the Ministry’s progress in digitising health information systems, from electronic medical records to the electronic community health information system, and the lessons learned along the way. He urged stronger collaboration between MakSPH and the Ministry, particularly in training future health informatics professionals and building institutional capacity to manage change in Uganda’s digital health sector transformation.
During the launch, MakSPH Dean, Prof. Rhoda Wanyenze, commended the remarkable speed of the Estonia–Makerere collaboration, noting that within a year, early conversations had already matured into a funded joint project. She emphasised that this milestone marks not just the start of a promising partnership, but also a unique opportunity to embed it more firmly within Uganda’s health system. Prof. Wanyenze called on all partners, the Ministry of Health, Makerere University, and the Estonian counterparts, to pursue a strategic tripartite arrangement, stressing that such collaboration could greatly strengthen Uganda’s digital health systems, accelerate technological innovation, and deliver measurable improvements in national health outcomes.
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