Health
Rockefeller Foundation, 11 Other Agencies Honored with 2024 Climate and Health Champion Awards
The Ministry of Health Uganda has recognised 12 outstanding agencies and eight individuals for championing climate change and health resilience in Uganda. They received the 2024 climate and health champions awards.
The awards were presented at the launch of the Climate Change Health National Adaptation Plan-H-NAP (2025-2030) to address the significant threat climate change poses to public health and enhance the resilience of the health sector against climate-related impacts in the country, by the Rt. Hon. Lukia Isanga Nakadama, the 3rd Deputy Prime Minister of Uganda and the woman Member of Parliament for Mayuge District while presiding over the ceremony as the Chief Guest at Sheraton Hotel, Kampala on Thursday August 22, 2024.
Speaking at the launch of the H-NAP, Dr. Diana Atwine, the Permanent Secretary Ministry of Health noted that climate change is a cross-cutting phenomena and that many institutions and individuals have been engaged in activities that directly or indirectly promote building of a climate resilient health system in Uganda.
The Ministry of Health handed the award to The Rockefeller Foundation, an American private foundation and philanthropic medical research and arts funding organization. The Foundation provided technical and financial support to Uganda to conduct the vulnerability assessments of the health sector and develop the Health National Adaptation Plan. With this funding, Makerere University School of Public Health (MakSPH) was asked to generate evidence through field research whose results were used to develop the H-NAP.
The Foundation was recognized for its technical and financial support towards Uganda’s climate and health response. Mr. William Asiko, Vice President and head of The Rockefeller Foundation’s Africa Regional Office received the award on behalf of The Foundation.
Other organisations that received the awards were the Office of the Prime Minister for its continued support to climate health emergencies. The Ministry of Water and Environment’s Department of Climate Change also received an award in recognition of the collaborative efforts on climate and health policies and governance in the country.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) Uganda country office also was recognized for its technical and financial support. Also, MakSPH received an appreciation award for its contributions to building a climate-resilient system in Uganda for its technical support in developing the H-NAP. Professor Rhoda Wanyenze, the Dean, received the award on behalf of the School.
Regenerate Africa’s Executive Director Mr. Charles Kabiswa, received the Appreciation Award in recognition of Regenerate’s technical and financial contribution towards building a climate resilient health system in Uganda. Regenerate Africa is a non-profit organisation that aims to contribute to, and accelerate Africa’s transition to a regenerative economy.
Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI), Seed Global Health Uganda, Pathfinder Uganda, Amref Africa, Tree Adoption Uganda and Reproductive Health Uganda equally received awards as a token of appreciation for the advocacy and distinguished support to the health sector.
Individual awards went to the Hon. Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng, Minister of Health as a special recognition for her technical, political leadership towards a climate resilient health system. Other officials recognized in the Ministry include; Dr. Diana Atwine, the Permanent Secretary, Dr. Henry Mwebesa, the Director General, Dr. Danie Kyabayinze, Director Health Services -Public Health, Dr. Herbert Nabaasa, Commissioner Health Services -Environmental Health Department and Dr. Didacus Namanya, a Health Geographer/ Climate Change Focal Person at the Ministry of Health for their technical leadership and advocacy.
Among those awarded was Dr. John Bosco Isunju, a Lecturer and Lead on the Climate Change Vulnerability and Adaptation Assessment (VAA) and H-NAP for his technical support and advocacy.
Uganda’s H-NAP was developed to guide climate change adaptation efforts in the health sector and was informed by the Climate Change Vulnerability and Adaptation Assessment (VAA) conducted in 716 selected health facilities across Uganda.
Climate change is by far the greatest threat to human health. Existing scientific evidence from the intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Assessment Reports and other sources show that environmental determinants of health such as water, food, air among others have been and will continue to directly and indirectly affected. At the same time, all other components of the health system such as the health infrastructure, health workforce, essential products and supply chains are also being negatively affected by climate change.
Uganda is already experiencing the effects of climate change, which is characterized by floods, and landslides with shorter or longer rains, harsher droughts, and warming up in different parts of the country.
Droughts affect the availability of safe and adequate water supply for domestic consumption, and floods contaminate water with disease causing pollutants, which can result in water-related diseases such as typhoid and cholera.
The vulnerability assessment conducted in 2023 had their results shared at national stakeholder’s validation meetings and at the COP28 in Dubai.
The VAA reported that nearly half (47.6%) of healthcare facilities are vulnerable to drought, while 39.7% face the risk of floods in Uganda. Additionally, 31.1% are exposed to storms, 12.0% are at risk from rising water levels, and 11.7% are susceptible to landslides. Lightning poses a threat to 8.9% of facilities, heat waves affect 2.0%, and cold waves impact 0.1%.
Other findings from the VAA assessment reveals that a significant 76.5% of healthcare facilities in Uganda that are affected by drought reported considerable impacts on their health workforce. Additionally, 73.6% experienced disruptions in water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) services, while 32.6% faced challenges related to infrastructure, technologies, products, and processes.
This H-NAP that has been launched covers ten components based on the WHO framework aimed at building a climate resilient low-carbon health system which is capable of anticipating, responding to, coping with, recovering from. and adapting to climate-related shocks and stress, while minimising the greenhouse gas emissions and other negative environmental impacts to deliver quality care and protect the health and well-being of present and future generations of Uganda.
The H-NAP proposes a range of short-term and long-term interventions across ten components: climate- transformative leadership and governance, climate-smart health workforce, integrated risk monitoring, and sustainable financing among others. Specific actions include; developing guidelines for mainstreaming climate and health, training health workers, enhancing disease surveillance systems, and revising infrastructure standards for climate-proofing.
Stakeholders at the H-NAP launch noted that its success relies on strong collaboration between government ministries, health agencies, civil society organizations, and the private sector, ensuring a coordinated and effective response to climate change.
Health experts from across Africa have called for stronger use of routine health data in planning, supervision and service delivery, noting that although countries are generating large amounts of health information, much of it is still not being used.
The call came during a webinar hosted by the Makerere University School of Public Health (MakSPH) in partnership with The Global Fund under the theme “From National Dashboards to District Action: Strengthening Subnational Data Use for Planning, Supervision and Service Delivery.”
The webinar brought together health information specialists, policymakers and practitioners from Uganda, Kenya, Zimbabwe and Ethiopia to share experiences and lessons on using subnational data for evidence based decision making.
Kenya’s journey from data collection to action
In her keynote address, Dr Helen Kiarie, Head of the Monitoring and Evaluation Division at Kenya’s Ministry of Health, urged health practitioners and policymakers to move beyond routine reporting and use data to improve health outcomes.
“The bottleneck is no longer collecting data. It is turning routine data into decisions and decisions into action,” Dr Kiarie said.
Drawing on Kenya’s experience, she pointed to the country’s shift from paper based reporting systems to digital platforms, noting that more than 95% of public health facilities have been digitised.
According to Dr Kiarie, Kenya has developed National Data Analytics Guidelines to support evidence based decision making across the health system. The guidelines set out a structured approach to data analysis, interpretation and dissemination so that the information generated can be used.
She said building a culture of data use requires leadership that asks for evidence, regular performance reviews, public dashboards, mentorship programmes, and the integration of data into planning and budgeting.
Community data improving maternal health
Dr Kiarie gave practical examples of how data can shape health outcomes.
In Kwale County, community health promoters used household level data to identify and follow up pregnant women, encouraging them to attend antenatal care services and deliver at health facilities.
As a result, skilled birth attendance increased from 50 per cent in 2022 to 85 per cent, while reported home deliveries fell from 808 to 248.
She also pointed to Kenya’s efforts to link digital health data with health financing systems, saying better documentation and data quality have strengthened accountability and increased reimbursements to health facilities.
She added that real time maternal and perinatal death surveillance systems are helping health authorities identify gaps in care, assign responsibility and take corrective action to prevent avoidable deaths.
“Data has moved beyond documenting losses to becoming an instrument for preventing the next avoidable death,” Dr Kiarie said.
Addressing data quality challenges
Despite major investments in digital health systems, Dr Kiarie acknowledged that data quality challenges remain.
She cited system downtimes, the parallel use of paper and digital records, limited access to some digital platforms, and resistance to change among some health workers as barriers to data quality and use.
Still, she said Kenya’s data quality has improved considerably through digitisation and continued investment in governance, analytics capacity and quality assurance.
Regional experiences and lessons
The webinar also included a panel discussion with experts from Uganda, Zimbabwe and Ethiopia, who shared experiences on strengthening data use at district and facility level.
The discussion pointed to the importance of strong leadership, timely information, digital infrastructure and feedback mechanisms that help health workers and managers make informed decisions with the data available.
Participants agreed that health information systems should do more than serve as reporting tools. They should also support decision making where services are delivered.
Moving from information to impact
Speaking during the webinar, Prof. Rhoda Wanyenze, Dean of Makerere University School of Public Health (MAKSPH), commended countries for progress in strengthening health information systems and encouraging data use.
She urged practitioners and researchers to go beyond documenting challenges and start capturing examples of how data informed decisions are improving programmes and health outcomes.
“It would be really good for us to dig deeper in terms of what decisions we have actually made and what we would not have known or done differently if we did not have the data,” she said.
In his closing remarks, Dr Wodimu Ayele of The Global Fund said the value of data lies in its ability to improve service delivery, inform decision making and strengthen accountability.
He called on countries to keep investing in data quality, analytics capacity and health information systems, while making sure evidence generated at all levels leads to measurable improvements in health outcomes.
Uganda has released the preliminary findings of the 2025 Uganda Population-Based HIV Impact Assessment (UPHIA 2025), a national household survey that provides a current picture of the country’s HIV response and selected non-communicable disease indicators.
At the Uganda Media Centre today, 1 October 2026, the Minister of Health, Hon. Dr Chris Baryomunsi, released the preliminary results and said the evidence would guide policy, resource allocation and service improvement, with particular attention to people and communities with the greatest gaps. He urged Ugandans to know their HIV status, use prevention services and, when diagnosed, start treatment promptly and adhere to it.
Among adults aged 15 years and above, HIV prevalence was 5.9 percent, including 7.3 percent among women and 4.1 percent among men. Among adults aged 15–64, prevalence was also 5.9 percent, unchanged from 2020/21. Across the country, prevalence ranged from 1.3 percent in Karamoja to 8.0 percent in the South Western region. Of adults living with HIV, 85.3 percent knew their status; 99.1 percent of those aware were on treatment; and 96.5 percent of those on treatment had achieved viral load suppression. HIV-status awareness remains the central gap in the 95-95-95 cascade.
The survey also measured selected non-communicable disease indicators for the first time. Elevated blood pressure affected 15.5 percent of adults, while 24.8 percent had overweight or obesity and 0.9 percent had raised blood glucose.
Conducted from July to September 2025, UPHIA 2025 was the first population-based HIV impact assessment to be fully country-led. The Ministry of Health provided overall leadership, while Makerere University School of Public Health served as the prime implementing organisation, working with UVRI, UBOS, regional referral hospitals and local governments. PEPFAR funded the survey through the U.S. CDC.
Watch the UPHIA 2025 preliminary results launch:
https://www.youtube.com/live/QfHFBaJ-L-w
Read the UPHIA 2025 summary results:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1nElGNwgcAcZyAo9CLCQKRpO2jJgyxjSc/view?usp=drive_link
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