Uganda has announced an ambitious plan in the battle against Malaria — putting the focus on prevention at household level, according to authorities.
Malaria is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in many developing countries, where young children and pregnant women are the groups most affected.
In Uganda, malaria is endemic in approximately 95% of the country, affecting over 90% of the population with up to 20% of all hospital deaths.
Dr Diana Atwine, the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Health told reporters in Kampala that Ugandan government which has a backing of partners including Global Fund would now put more emphasis on disease prevention.
Dr. Atwine revealed that Uganda is currently battling a severe malaria epedemic, whose prevalence had been reduced from 49% to 9% in 2019.
“Since we have an upgraded Public Health Act, we will provide processes that will enable the community to take responsibility for their own health. Disease prevention is the role of every home, and the community and not government alone. We want people to clear the bush in and near their homes and do basics like remove stagnant water that helps mosquitoes breed,” Dr. Atwine who spoke to reporters at the sidelines of Uganda Country Coordinating Mechanism for the Global Fund.
The Global Fund, the world’s largest financier of AIDS, TB, and malaria prevention, treatment, and care programs announced it would release about $587 million about (UGX 2 trillion) to the government of Uganda in handling malaria, HIV and tuberculosis
Under this arrangement, HIV/AIDS will received $ 288 million, TB $31 million and malaria $267million.
Uganda has qualified for the fund because of proper utilization and direction of previous funding towards its intended use and ensuring best practices during the administering of the fund.
Uganda, through the Country Coordinating Mechanisms which is the national committee that submits funding applications to the Global Fund and oversees grants, is expected to submit the application to secure the release of the funds.
The Global Fund is a financing mechanism rather than an implementing agency. Programs are implemented by in-country partners such as ministries of health, while the Global Fund secretariat, whose staff only have an office in Geneva, monitors the programs. Implementation is overseen by Country Coordinating Mechanisms, country-level committees consisting of in-country stakeholders that need to include, according to Global Fund requirements, a broad spectrum of representatives from government, NGOs, faith-based organizations, the private sector, and people living with the diseases. This system has kept the Global Fund secretariat smaller than other international bureaucracies. The model has also raised concerns about conflict of interest, as some of the stakeholders represented on the Country Coordinating Mechanisms may also receive money from the Global Fund, either as grant recipients, sub-recipients, private persons (e.g. for travel or participation at seminars) or contractors.
According to Andrew Musoke the chairperson of the country coordinating mechanism which coordinates and mobilizes Global fund money into Uganda says they are now discussing key priorities where they are going to spend the global fund money in the most efficiency way.
The Global Fund 2023-2025 allocation methodology drives funding to higher burden, lower income countries, specifically accounting for HIV epidemics among key and vulnerable populations, the threat of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (TB) and the risk of malaria resurgence.
Musoke said Global fund was aware about the setbacks to the health systems as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, and has increased the allocation to countries like Uganda.
He said because of limited resources, Global Fund was asking countries to strengthen their systems, especially in disease prevention.
