Uganda has made notable progress in increasing coverage of Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child, and Adolescent Health (RMNCAH) services over the past two decades, but overall progress remains uneven due to inadequate investment and funding for health, fragmented and disorganized healthcare systems, gaps in evidence-based policy, and weaknesses in policy implementation.
In an effort to catalyze policy improvement in Africa, the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) of Canada and the Malaysia-based United Nations University International Institute of Global Health (UNU-IIGH) have agreed to co-fund a program of work aimed at promoting Maternal, Newborn, Sexual and Reproductive Health (MNSRH) policy improvement and development in five African countries, including Uganda.
On Wednesday 18th January 2023, a partner engagement meeting was held in Kampala to conduct a situational analysis of the Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child, and Adolescent Health (RMNCAH) services in Uganda and discuss challenges in policy formulation, implementation, and evaluation.
In his opening remarks, Prof. Charles Ibingira highlighted the challenges in policy formulation, implementation, and evaluation in RMNCAH services.
“Our targeted outputs are; updated/improved versions of existing policies, or new policies, an improved MNSRH research-policy-practice system (including better coordination and communication between commissioners, producers, and users of research), case studies of catalyzing policy improvement in Africa – CPIA model, and two structured courses for a cohort of young professionals in policy analysis and implementation research,” Prof. Ibingira highlighted.
Prof. Charles Ibingira, the team lead on the project takes notes during the RMNCAH partner’s engagement.
The session was moderated by Professor Elizeus Rutebemberwa, the Deputy Dean, School of Public Health assisted by Dr. Josaphat Byamugisha, of Obstetrics & Gynecology and the Director, Makerere University Health Services with assistance from Professor Lynn Atuyambe.
Professor Elizeus Rutebemberwa, the Deputy Dean, School of Public Health moderates the session.
According to Dr. Sarah Byakika, the Commissioner Health Services Planning, Financing, and Policy at the Ministry of Health, there is a need to evaluate program indicators on a regular basis.
“The challenge is that when it comes to monitoring and evaluation, and following up on why we are not achieving targets, there is a big gap. We produce annual sector performance reports but don’t give time to reviewing this performance. People always just go back home and wait for the next report,” remarked Byakika.
Further adding; “We are good at designing policies but are struggling when it comes to learning from them.”
Dr. Sarah Byakika, the Commissioner Health Services Planning, Financing, and Policy at the Ministry of Health.
Dr. Moses Walakira, the family planning program specialist at the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) decried the absence of a joint multi-sectoral action plan when it comes to addressing RMNCAH issues.
“How do we work collaboratively to address structural barriers? Who are the gatekeepers? And how do we target them together? Harmonization of perspectives and commitments at different levels is so important, otherwise, we shall remain fragmented in our policy implementation,” said Dr. Walakira.
Dr. Moses Walakira, the family planning programme specialist at the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).
Ms. Friday Madinah, a Senior Youth Officer from the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development, advises that when dealing with issues related to young people, women, children, and people with disabilities, the Ministry of Health should involve the Ministry of Gender, Labour, and Social Development, as they also have the necessary linkages and structures to assist in implementing these policies.
Ms. Friday Madinah, a Senior Youth Officer from the Ministry of Gender, Labour, and Social Development speaking at the event.
“When issues of young people, women, children and even those of people with disabilities are being handled, it is mostly the Ministry of Health taking charge yet we at the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development also have the linkages and structures to help in implementing these policies. Please bring us on board, and make use of our competencies in these areas,” says Madinah.
Dr. Olive Sentumbwe, Family Health, and Population Adviser, at the World Health Organization (WHO), also underscores the need for a platform for the RMNCAH team to utilize in discussions with the other key players in regard to the kind of support they can provide.
Dr. Olive Sentumbwe, Family Health and Population Adviser, at the World Health Organization (WHO) speaks at the partners engagement.
“The platform is crucial when it comes to accountability; following up/asking other sectors, and Ministries whether our policies and action points are being implemented. We also need different platforms at the different levels of government so there is an understanding of policies and their implementation processes by the different beneficiaries,” she said.
According to Dr. Jessica Nsungwa, the Commissioner for Maternal and Child Health at the Ministry of Health of Uganda, accountability ought to be mutual in order for policies to be successful.
“Government should be accountable to its people, but the people also need to be accountable to the government. For example, we bought a bunch of COVID-19 vaccines using government money but people refused to come for them and some of those doses ended up expiring,” Dr. Nsungwa attests.
Dr. Jessica Nsungwa, the Commissioner for Maternal and Child Health at the Ministry of Health of Uganda.
The Minister of Health Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng reported in June 2022 that 2.6 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine expired due to a lack of interest and misinformation. This highlights the need to improve cooperation and coordination between the public, private sectors, and community to improve access to maternal, newborn, sexual, and reproductive health.
Participants holding a discussion at the RMNCAH partners’ engagement meeting.
Hon. Dr. Bhoka Didi George, a public health specialist, area MP for Obongi County in Obongi District, and a member of the Committee on Health in Parliament reminded the team that the current public health law in Uganda is obsolete, dating back to the 1930s.
“From a legal and regulatory framework point of view, there is a lot of room for improvement. What we have is a national policy, not a law. Therefore, we cannot hold the government accountable in case they fail to deliver on Maternal, Newborn, Sexual, and Reproductive Health for example. We need an enabling legal and regulatory framework,” Hon. Dr. Bhoka.
Hon. Dr. Bhoka Didi George, a public health specialist, area MP for Obongi County in Obongi District, and a member of the Committee on Health in Parliament.
Dr. Richard Mugahi Adyeeri, the Assistant Commissioner Ministry of Health in charge of Reproductive Health advises the localization of policies to suit Uganda’s population needs at the implementation of RMNCAH services.
“One district with five million people, but only one DHO [District Health Officer] can’t have the same issues as a district with only 60,000 people for example. Let us have policies that are not only culturally, but also socially sound,” Dr. Mugahi said.
Dr. Richard Mugahi Adyeeri, the Assistant Commissioner Ministry of Health in charge of Reproductive Health.
Prof. Ibingira stresses that the engagement was quite central to the responsibility of individual stakeholders, which is proper service delivery for the health improvement of Ugandans.
“You have given us a lot of information on the issues we are tasked with, regarding policy formulation and implementation. We are now going to do the analysis by looking at the different existing policies so we can come up with strategies instrumental to accelerating policy improvement. We hope a lot is going to change, and that other countries will learn from us. Thank you very much,” Prof. Ibingira.
The CPIA partnership operates in five countries and is coordinated by the UNU-IIGH, which leads to the conceptualization and evaluation of the program’s model. Makerere University leads the implementation of the CPIA model and operational plan in Uganda, and the project aims to benefit staff and students through visiting fellowships, internships, and Ph.D. research opportunities.
The post holder will be required to provide nursing care to patients attending IDC, provide health education and advise to patients and their family members, provide translation whenever necessary, guide in clinical practice and duties of other nurses. Participate in clinical research studies.
Key Responsibilities
Provides nursing care to patients attending the IDC
To provide clinical care including triaging, clinical assessment of patients of patient’s problems, investigations to HIV/AIDS patients attending IDI-supported health facilities in line with standard treatment guidelines.
Assist in management of very sick patients brought in Urgent care with knowledge, skills and Support appropriate referral of complex patients’ through liaison with immediate team members, senior clinicians and other specialized facilities.
Lead education and facility sensitization efforts to continuously build knowledge among clients and the attendants at Urgent care and the general clinic.
Participate in identification, implementation and documentation of continuous quality improvement activities along client care and treatment.
Assists medical doctors in carrying out clinical procedures.
Provides translation services to visiting medical doctors as required
Ensures patient flow in the clinic ( IDC)
Performs quality assurance and quality control (QA/AC) to ensure completeness of source documents.
Participates in giving Medicines when required.
Checks medical supply stock and ensures procedure charts are fully equipped
Guides the clinical practice and duties of other nursing staff
Participates as a full member of the IDC health care team
Attends clinic staff meetings on a daily basis as available
Participate whenever requested to do so in clinic research studies.
Participate in compilation and submission of accurate activity reports according to the set guidelines.
This job description is not exhaustive and the post holder will need to be flexible and to undertake such other duties as may become necessary with the development of the Infectious Diseases Institute.
Academic Qualifications
Diploma or Bachelors Degree in Nursing
Full and active registration with the Uganda Nurses and Midwives council (Valid general practice license).
Person Specification
Completion of Nurses Training in a recognized educational institution with Diploma/ Bachelors
Minimum of 3 years work experience in a clinical setting
Full and active registration with the Uganda Nurses and Midwives council (Valid general practice license).
Self- motivated and capable of meeting deadlines.
Excellent communication skills.
Good interpersonal skills and able to interact productively with other team members.
More details
Job Code: NPCT001 No of Positions: 1 Station: IDI-Mulago Classification: Full-time Duration: 1 Months Reports to: NURSE TEAM LEAD Posted Date: 2026-07-06 09:06:27.000 Closing Date: 2026-07-19 17:00:00.000
Across Kampala, families use saucepans, cooking pots, frying pans, kettles, and pressure cookers every day. Makerere University School of Public Health is now investigating whether some of these items may expose households to lead, a toxic heavy metal that can enter food during cooking if contaminated materials are used to make them.
The year-long study, titled “Assessment of Lead Contamination in Domestic Cookware, Supply Chains, and Exposure Pathways in Informal Settlements of Kampala,” was launched on 11 June 2026 at MakSPH’s ResilientAfrica Network (RAN) in Kololo. Supported through the Lead Exposure Elimination Project (LEEP), with funding from Bloomberg Philanthropies, and led by Mr. Douglas Bulafu, Mr. Tom Okade, and Dr. Rawlance Ndejjo, the study will assess total and leachable lead levels in commonly used cookware, map how the products are sourced, distributed, and sold, and identify feasible interventions to reduce household exposure to lead.
Ms. Prossy Nabaggala, Senior Standards Officer at the Uganda National Bureau of Standards, pictured centre, consults with study co-investigators Mr. Tom Okade and Mr. Douglas Bulafu during the launch of MakSPH’s study on possible lead exposure from domestic cookware in Kampala.
Today, lead remains a major and preventable public health concern globally. WHO reports that no level of exposure is known to be without harmful effects and estimates that lead exposure contributes to more than 3.5 million deaths worldwide, mainly through cardiovascular effects. Children and women of child-bearing age are said to be especially vulnerable, with exposure linked to impaired brain development, reduced learning ability, harm to unborn children, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease and kidney damage.
In Uganda, lead exposure concerns also extend to household products and informal markets. Aluminium pots and saucepans, particularly low-cost locally fabricated items, may be made from recycled scrap metal. If contaminated materials are used, lead may leach into food during cooking or other food-contact use, creating a possible route of exposure in homes.
During the launch, Assoc. Prof. David Musoke, Head of MakSPH’s Department of Disease Control and Environmental Health, underscored the importance of involving stakeholders throughout the research process. He said engaging stakeholders from the generation of research ideas to implementation and dissemination helps ensure findings do not remain within the University but are translated into evidence that can inform policy, practice, and community action.
“We engage with stakeholders throughout the research process, from developing ideas and designing projects to implementation and dissemination,” Dr. Musoke noted. “I am pleased that this workshop brings together policymakers, the Ministry of Health, non-governmental organisations, Kampala Capital City Authority, academia, staff and students. This helps ensure that research findings do not remain at the University but are beneficial to our stakeholders.”
Assoc. Prof. David Musoke delivers remarks during the study launch, emphasising sustained stakeholder engagement to ensure research findings inform policy, practice and community action.
He observed that the study was timely, as it addresses an important yet under-examined public health concern, arguing that while lead exposure from paint, pipes and drinking water has received considerable attention, exposure through cookware remains less understood despite its widespread use in many households. He added that the new research builds on MakSPH’s broader work in disease control and environmental health and will generate critical evidence to inform action on lead exposure risks in Uganda. Dr. Musoke also commended the study team for initiating this work.
Previously, MakSPH researchers Mr. Abdullah Ali Halage, Mr. Tom Okade, Dr. James Muleme and Dr. Juliet Kiguli, together with Mr. Ahmada Zziwa and Mr. Robert Mugabi, assessed knowledge, perceptions and practices related to heavy metal contamination and health risks among residents living near Kiteezi in Kampala, Katikolo in Mukono and Nkumba in Entebbe. The study, done in 2024, reached 505 residents and captured community and frontline perspectives from people living and working around the dumpsites. It showed how daily contact with dumpsite environments may expose communities to toxic heavy metals such as lead, arsenic, cadmium, and mercury through soil, water, air, food crops, animal products and waste-handling practices.
Evidence from the study, funded by the Government of Uganda through the Makerere University Research and Innovation Fund (MakRIF) and disseminated on 26 June 2025, showed that heavy metal exposure risks around the three municipal dumpsites within the Kampala Metropolitan Area were shaped by both environmental conditions and community behaviour.
Dr. Sabrina Kitaka, Member of the MakRIF Grant Management Committee, pictured centre, with research team members including Mr. Abdullah Ali Halage, Mr. Tom Okade and Dr. Juliet Kiguli, following the dissemination of findings on heavy metal exposure risks around Kampala Metropolitan dumpsites on 26 June 2025.
Although residents lived near dumpsites where waste can release heavy metals into soil, water and food chains, 76.4 per cent could not define heavy metals, and only 45.9 per cent had adequate knowledge of contamination and related health risks. Gaps extended to daily exposure pathways, with 38.4 per cent unaware that vegetables grown near dumpsites may contain high heavy metal levels and 39.8 per cent unaware that milk or meat from animals grazed near dumpsites may also be contaminated. More than half viewed dumpsite soils as fertile, 50.7 per cent considered such milk safe, and 51.3 per cent believed dumpsite waste could be used as manure.
The study recommended stronger risk communication, environmental monitoring, safer land-use enforcement and community education. The work on lead in domestic cookware now extends this focus from dumpsite-related heavy metal exposure to a possible household pathway. Mr. Douglas Bulafu, an early-career researcher and Principal Investigator of the study, said the team will examine whether commonly used cooking pots, saucepans and related utensils contribute to exposure, and generate evidence to guide safer cookware use, standards and market oversight.
“Lead contamination has been documented from sources such as paint, fuel and air pollution, but less attention has been given to cookware as a potential pathway of exposure. That is the gap this study seeks to address,” Mr. Bulafu said. “We focused on Kampala because it has many informal settlements, small-scale cookware workshops and a large consumer market where low-cost cookware is widely produced, sold and used. When people buy these products, they often do not know where they were made, what materials were used, or whether they contain lead. The supply chains are also poorly understood, meaning households could be exposed without knowing.”
Mr. Douglas Bulafu, Principal Investigator, speaks during the launch of the MakSPH study on possible lead exposure from domestic cookware in Kampala, highlighting the need for evidence to guide safer cookware use, standards and market oversight.
The study will use a cross-sectional, mixed-methods design to connect laboratory evidence with supply-chain realities in Kampala’s informal settlements. The team will purchase about 100 cookware samples from open-air markets, roadside vendors, retail shops and supermarkets in Kisenyi, Katanga, Bwaise, Namuwongo, Banda and Kasubi, test them for total and leachable lead, and conduct about 30 key informant interviews across the supply chain to understand how cookware is sourced, produced, distributed and used.
Findings will be validated with stakeholders and used to identify feasible interventions, including stronger regulation and enforcement, raw-material control, better manufacturing practices, market surveillance and consumer awareness. The evidence is expected to support standards development, product testing, policy uptake, safer manufacturing practices and public guidance on cookware choices, helping reduce household exposure to lead and associated health risks.
Speaking on behalf of the Ministry of Health, Dr. Didacus Namanya, a health geographer and environmental health expert, welcomed the study, saying scientific evidence on lead exposure is critical because public health decisions can have lasting consequences for life and wellbeing.
Dr. Namanya implored the research team to ensure the evidence from the study informs decisions beyond academia, shaping policy, strengthening public health practice and guiding practical measures to reduce lead exposure in communities. He emphasised that research should not remain in the “ivory tower” but reach decision-makers and the public, so that evidence from the study translates into policy, practice and stronger protection for communities.
Dr. Didacus Namanya, speaking on behalf of the Ministry of Health, delivers remarks during the study launch on 11 June 2026, urging the research team to ensure evidence on lead exposure informs policy, practice and practical community protection measures.
Kampala — On Saturday, a car park on the campus of Makerere University in Kampala became the stage for a continental emergency response. Delegates, dignitaries and diplomats gathered in the tent outside the Infectious Diseases Institute (IDI), a research institute owned by the university, for the formal launch of the Continental Incident Management Support Team (IMST), a joint Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) and World Health Organization (WHO) operation racing to contain the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola sweeping through the Democratic Republic of the Congo and, increasingly, Uganda. After the ribbon-cutting, guests were led inside to tour the team’s new home at IDI’s McKinnell Knowledge Centre, where the command offices have now been set up.
Dr Chris Baryomunsi joins delegates for a group photograph at the IMST launch, Infectious Diseases Institute, Makerere University.
The numbers explain the urgency. As of 21 June, more than 1,000 confirmed cases and 269 deaths had been recorded across the two countries, the vast majority in Ituri Province in eastern DRC. Uganda’s tally stood at 20 cases and two deaths, almost all traced to cross-border movement from the DRC. Eighty-two health workers have been infected, 18 fatally, a toll that helped push the WHO to declare a Public Health Emergency of International Concern in May, mirrored days later by Africa CDC’s own continental emergency declaration.
Prof Henry Mwanaki Alinaitwe, Deputy Vice Chancellor for Finance and Administration at Makerere University, with the acting US Ambassador to Uganda and Prof Samuel Luboga, IDI board chair, at the IMST launch.
Until now, the international response has been coordinated remotely, a patchwork of video calls and scattered logistics that officials admit slowed decision-making. The Kampala launch marks a shift from that fragmented model to a single, physically co-located command centre housed at IDI’s McKinnell Knowledge Centre, bringing case management, surveillance, logistics and risk communication specialists under one roof. From there, the convoy of delegates moved on to Kajjansi, on the outskirts of Entebbe, for the formal activation of the IMST’s regional logistics hub, the facility tasked with staging and rapidly deploying protective equipment and medical supplies across the outbreak zone.
Dr Chris Baryomunsi inspects the newly activated IMST logistics hub at Kajjansi, near Entebbe.
For Uganda’s health minister, Dr Chris Baryomunsi, the symbolism was as important as the logistics. Speaking at the launch, he argued that no nation can consider itself protected until its neighbours are equally prepared, framing cross-border solidarity as an operational necessity rather than an aspiration. He also announced a new memorandum of understanding with the DRC establishing joint Ebola treatment centres and laboratory services in the border towns of Aru and Kasenyi, warning that outbreak response cannot succeed while transmission continues unchecked on one side of a shared frontier.
Dr Chris Baryomunsi speaks as the guest of honour at the launch of the Continental Incident Management Support Team, Infectious Diseases Institute, Makerere University.
The WHO’s regional emergency director, Dr Marie-Roseline Belizaire, described the unified command structure as transformative, saying it would pool resources across agencies, cut duplication and keep field decisions anchored to scientific evidence. Africa CDC’s Dr Tolbert Nyenswah confirmed the team, specialists in case management, infection prevention, logistics and contact tracing, has now relocated physically to Kampala to work closer to the epicentre. Eleven epidemic-prone African nations, including Rwanda, Burundi, Angola and the Central African Republic, are participating in the preparedness effort even though most have not registered a single case.
Dr Marie-Roseline Belizaire, WHO AFRO’s regional emergency director, speaks at the launch of the Continental Incident Management Support Team in Kampala.
For IDI and Makerere University, hosting the command centre carries weight beyond the immediate crisis. IDI’s executive director, Dr Andrew Kambugu, said the institute had provided a fully equipped space, now installed at the McKinnell Knowledge Centre, enabling real-time communication between field teams, regional governments and international partners in Geneva, and framed the moment as proof that academic institutions can engage directly with pressing societal problems rather than observe from the sidelines.
Dr Andrew Kambugu delivers welcome remarks at the launch of the Continental Incident Management Support Team, Infectious Diseases Institute, Makerere University.
That framing matters for a continent whose research infrastructure has often been treated as peripheral to its own health emergencies. By anchoring the IMST’s command function within a Ugandan public university rather than in a foreign capital, the launch signals a modest but symbolic rebalancing: an African-led institution taking custody of an African-led response. The day’s itinerary made the point physically as well as symbolically: from the ribbon-cutting in Makerere’s car park, to the tour of the new command offices, to the drive out to Kajjansi to switch on the logistics hub, delegates traced the full chain of the response they had just committed to running.
Dr Chris Baryomunsi poses with the IMST logistics hub team at Kajjansi, following the hub’s formal activation.
Fred Ouma is the Corporate Communications Specialist, Infectious Diseases Institute (IDI).
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