Prime
We must prioritise the health sector
Doctors attend to a patient at Mulago National Referral Hospital in 2023. The cost of a kidney transplant at Mulago is estimated at around Shs55 million. PHOTO/FILE.
What you need to know:
- Late in June, the World Bank revealed that government has been devoting only 3.9 percent of the total public spending on health. It recommended prioritisation of the health sector if we are to achieve the health-related Sustainable Development Goals
On Thursday, this publication revealed that the suspension of organ transplant surgeries by the Ministry of Health, pending the passing of the Uganda Human Organ Donation and Transplant Act, 2023, has never been lifted despite the fact that the Act was signed into law by the President on March 27, 2023.
The suspension has never been lifted ostensibly because this country is too broke to raise Shs5 billion to fund the establishment of a Human Organ Transplant Council, which is supposed to, among other things, regulate, organise, and supervise the national organ, tissue, and cell donation and transplant and; regulate designated transplant centres and approved banks.
Shs3.6 billion was required for training and benchmarking from other countries that have since made notable advancements in organ transplants and another Shs1.4 billion to fund the activities of the Council.
It is a shame of elephantine proportions that operationalisation of the Act is on the long list of “unfunded priorities”.
How possible is it that a nation that can provide Shs53.7 billion for the President to donate or fork out, Shs2.4 billion on the purchase of new Mercedes Benz vehicles for the Speaker and Deputy Speaker of Parliament, and we cannot raise Shs5 billion to establish such an important Council?
The situation is a serious indictment on the part of our planners, policymakers and those in government. It raises serious questions about their abilities to put things into perspective and make right judgement calls. They, it would appear, are incapable of getting the nation’s priorities right.
Research by Makerere University Medical School lists kidney diseases as one of the 10 top causes of death with a case fatality rate of 21 percent among patients admitted with chronic kidney diseases. This calls for prompt action. What better way than to pass a supplementary budget to facilitate the creation of the Council?
Late in June, the World Bank revealed that government has been devoting only 3.9 percent of the total public spending on health. It recommended prioritisation of the health sector if we are to achieve the health-related Sustainable Development Goals and have a more productive population in future.
The 23rd edition of the Uganda Economic Update (UEU), noted that government’s expenditure on health has been dwindling by the year. The bank warned that Uganda’s next generation of workers will be among the lowest worldwide unless the country increases spending on education, health and social protection. We need to heed that call as a matter of urgency.
