MUNYONYO – The very 1st African Hepatitis B summit has kicked off Tuesday June 18, 2019 at Munyonyo Speke Resort.
Over 400 delegates from all over the world are in attendance.
The summit is the first of the kind on the continent.
The summit is running under the theme “Eliminating Viral Hepatitis in Africa, Implementing the viral Hepatitis Strategy.
The Africa Hepatitis Summit is convened by Health Ministry and the National Organization for people living with Hepatitis B (NOPLHB).
The summit is intended to strengthen the broader Hepatitis community by sharing ideas, experiences and best practices in addressing the many challenges of viral hepatitis in the region.
In addition, the summit also plays as a platform for African countries to discuss best practices and lessons learnt in the fight against Viral Hepatitis.
Dr. Diana Atwine, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Health said, “Uganda has undertaken strategic interventions to fight Hepatitis and positive strides have been realized. We have been carrying out screening of the population and mass vaccination of those that are not infected. We have also been sensitizing the public on the problems of this disease and how we can avoid it.”
According to the Uganda HIV impact assessment survey (UPHIA 2016), the prevalence of Hepatitis B among adults aged 15-49 years old stands at 4.1%. The survey further indicates a regional variation with the northern region having the highest prevalence of up to 4.6% and the south-western region with the lowest at 0.8%.
