Featured Slider

What Tuberculosis Means for Maternal Reproductive Health

Joan Kaunhe [not her actual name] was diagnosed with tuberculosis (TB) during her first pregnancy, which resulted in a miscarriage, two years ago. She got unhappy as a result of the TB drugs’ negative effects, and she had difficulties eating. She and her husband were diagnosed with HIV a year later, during her second pregnancy. He passed away early this year, not long after his wife was diagnosed with tuberculosis for the second time. Despite the fact that she has completed her second round of therapy, her condition has caused her to abandon her employment. She and her children are supported by her mother-in-pension. law’s She does not inform anybody in her family or community about her HIV and tuberculosis because she is scared her mother-in-law would reject her and her children discriminately.

Patients like Joan are seen every day by those of us at Reproductive Health Uganda (RHU) who practice infectious disease treatment while providing integrated sexual reproductive health and rights services in TB-endemic countries like Uganda. Her narrative is, indeed, the story of tuberculosis among vulnerable women of reproductive age. Pregnant women are more vulnerable to tuberculosis, but we don’t know the best approaches to prevent or manage the disease in these women. Even the most fundamental facts that we have able to establish are unknown to a huge majority of health care practitioners in TB-endemic nations’ rural and disadvantaged urban settings. For example,

As we commemorate International Tuberculosis Day on March 24, 2022, under the theme “The Clock is Ticking”, it conveys the sense that Uganda is running out of time to act on the commitments to end TB made by global leaders. In women, TB is most common during the reproductive years.

Uganda is one of the 30 World Health Organization (WHO) designated countries with a high burden of TB and HIV. In 2019, the estimated incidence rate for TB was 200 per 100,000 people and the mortality rate was 35 per 100,000 people.

According to the Ministry of Health in Uganda, the TB disease burden stands at 3.5 infected persons per 100,000, of which two of these are women between 15 and 49 years of age.

Anicia Filda, Reproductive Health Uganda (RHU) Gulu branch in charge, says that women are twice as likely to develop TB around the time of pregnancy than at any other time in their lives.

“If a woman develops TB when she is pregnant, she has a 20% risk of death,” Filda said.

TB is a major cause of maternal mortality, especially among HIV-infected women. Pregnant women with TB also have a higher risk of pregnancy complications, such as miscarriage, hemorrhage, and infection.

If a woman develops TB when she is pregnant, her infant has a 38% risk of death.

Infants born to TB-infected mothers are at a higher risk of preterm delivery and poor birth weight. HIV-positive moms who have tuberculosis are twice as likely as those who do not have tuberculosis to transfer HIV to their child during pregnancy. In neonates, tuberculosis infections develop faster than in adults. Even children under the age of five are eight times more likely to die if they live in the same house as a mother with tuberculosis.

Aldon Walukamba G, the author, is the RHU Media Advocacy and Documentation Coordinator.

In Uganda, acceptance of family planning is increasing

“It’s preferable to have one child than many,” Nyekuch, 28, at the Pagirinya health Centre III family planning section in Adjumani district, explained.

This is the counsel she provides to both men and women, yet she has had a totally different experience.

She married at the age of 14 and gave birth to her first child a year later, before the war in Sudan forced her to Uganda as a refugee. Before then, she was not required, like many other child brides, to seek an education, thus she never learned to read or write. She now has five children, all of whom she wishes to have a totally different destiny than she had.

“I hope that when my daughter is at least 22 years old, she will make the correct decisions and become a mother,” Nyekuch remarked. “By then, she’ll have completed her university education.” All of my children, I hope, will be able to receive an education.”

Nyekuch embodies the plight of Uganda’s vulnerable village women in many ways. According to the 2020 State of World Population report, the country’s fertility rate is five (4.6) children per woman, and on average 25% of women give birth while still teens.

The maternal mortality rate in the country is high, in part because health risks increase as women have more pregnancies. According to a recent joint United Nations study, over 368 women die during giving birth for every 100,000 owing to pregnancy-related causes.

Contraceptives reduce the risk of maternal injury and death by lowering the number of unplanned pregnancies, which account for 43% of all pregnancies in Uganda. Couples can also determine the appropriate family size for their situation by using family planning. Despite this, many people are wary of using family planning.

“This is due to a lack of comprehensive information, inadequate counselling skills among health service providers, limited access to contraception, users’ fear of side effects, and misinterpretation of religious doctrine regarding family planning,” Dr. Peter Ibembe, Reproductive Health Uganda Director of Programs, explained.

Some cultural influences, such as the inclination and desire to have a big family, by some couples also play a key role.

Advance Family Planning (AFP) initiative is working closely with the Reproductive Health Uganda (RHU), Ministry of Health to ensure a reliable supply of contraceptives to government health facilities. RHU also trains health workers and provides technical support to health facilities, like the family planning units at health centers in Uganda, through its 20 clinics and branches spread across the country.

RHU, in partnership with AFP is also increasing the family planning choices available to women, but also executing out advocacy activities among policy makers, media and the community. At the centre in Uganda’s vulnerable communities, women are able to select from a variety of safe, reliable contraceptive methods, including condoms, pills, injections, implants and bi-tubal litigation or vasectomy.

Contraception is steadily gaining traction in this traditionally conservative society. According to a government survey, barely 30% of married Ugandan women employed contemporary techniques of family planning in 2016. As per Performance Monitoring for Action (PMA) reports, 40% of married women utilized contraception by 2020.

Most of the women Nyekuch knows take injections, implants, or tablets, according to her. “Only a handful couples I know employ alternative ways. I, too, utilize the injection “she stated

However, there is still considerable skepticism. Contraceptive implants, for example, are feared by many people, despite the fact that they are safe and provide long-term protection against unintended pregnancy. “People are reluctant to use them, and husbands won’t let them because they’re worried their wives won’t be able to have children again,” Rhoda Namukwana, a registered midwife at RHU Bwaise branch, stated.

Nkonanyi, was also visiting the RHU outreach family planning Centre in Kyangwali refugee camp. She was married at only 13, and her first baby was born the following year. Now, at age 25, she has two children and relies on family planning.

“We barely scrape by,” Nkonanyi explained, revealing that the family relies on her husband’s salary as a community digger to make ends meet. “If I send my son to school, we will want more funds for his school uniform, books, notebooks, and other necessities.” That’s something we can’t afford.”

She wants both of her children to expect more from life. For instance, she hopes her daughter will not get married until she is 20, and Nkonanyi herself wants to wait before having more children.

“I’d like to wait at least three years before having another child.”

Aldon Walukamba G, the author, is the RHU Media Advocacy and Documentation Coordinator.

Reproductive Health Uganda strengthens disaster emergency preparedness plans

Reproductive Health Uganda (RHU) has expanded its plans to prepare employees to respond in times of man-made and natural catastrophes in order to deliver better services to Ugandans.

The need to improve RHU staff awareness of how to deal with crises was recognized by Dr. Peter Ibembe, RHU Director of Programs, and Annet Kyarimpa, RHU Manager of Safe Motherhood, which led to the planning.

“It’s critical to recognize that an organization is prone to calamities and to plan ahead of time,” Dr. Ibembe added.

According to Kyarimpa, getting the relevant information, contributing, and planning for disaster preparation requires a coordinated effort on the part of the organization’s departments, units, and directorates (EPP).

When an emergency occurs, this will advise RHU on what to offer and how to provide integrated sexual reproductive health and rights (SRHR) services.

“Common knowledge of duties and responsibilities in humanitarian and disaster response is crucial for workers,” Annet Kyarimpa explains.

For this reason, more than ten RHU employees gathered in Mbarara for a week to prepare an EPP that would help the company respond more efficiently in times of disaster.

The services of Seema Manohar, an EPP consultant, were obtained with the help of the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the International Planned Parenthood Federation – Africa Regional (IPPFAR).

Seema underlines the need of having a separate strategy for each crisis, whether it is long-term or short-term.

But, as Seema pointed out, “we must remember that emergency response is a process and that we must always be prepared, since how quickly you respond to a tragedy counts.”

Edward Kiggundu, RHU Monitoring and Evaluation Coordinator, noted shortage of resources like as water, land, pasture, firewood, and food as sources of conflict among the vulnerable, underserved, and disadvantaged groups that RHU seeks to assist while delivering a study report. This he says affects delivery, access and follow up for those in need of integrated SRHR services from RHU.

RHU personnel and the consultant finished the emergency preparation planning meeting by putting up a draft document that will be used to direct operations during an emergency.

Aldon Walukamba G, the author, is the RHU Media Advocacy and Documentation Coordinator.

Family Guidance Association of Ethiopia appreciates RHU for empowering youths

Today’s youth in Uganda face numerous obstacles, ranging from persistent poverty to entrenched inequities. Yet, if concerned leaders act now, a major remedy is just around the corner.

Demographics are changing in many of Uganda’s poor, emerging regions, with a large number of young people entering the workforce and a decreasing number of dependents. These are possible indicators of economic growth that can occur when a larger proportion of the population is employed, allowing households to save and invest more money. These reforms, when implemented on a large scale, have the potential to lift entire communities out of poverty.

However, there will be no dividend if Ugandans do not invest in young people’s health, education, jobs, and human rights at the outset.

At a high-level meeting with visitors from the Family Guidance Association of Ethiopia (FGAE) at RHU in Kampala, Jackson Chekweko, Executive Director of Reproductive Health Uganda (RHU), said, “By tapping into the massive transformative capabilities of youth, entire nations stand to improve their prospects.”

“We need to invest more resources in teaching young people to be innovators, entrepreneurs, and change agents,” says Chekweko.  At the event, youth leaders echoed Jackson Chekweko’s call to action.

“Let young people contribute with our skills, our education, our opinions, and our active engagement,” said Daisy Kandole, the RHU’s Youth Assistant.

Efforts to empower, educate, and employ young people have the potential to have a widespread impact throughout society.

Mohammed Katabalwa, the RHU Youth Action Movement (YAM) Chairperson and a 25-year-old from Kampala, Uganda, is a striking example of this. Struggles characterize his neighborhood, which is plagued by poverty, high rates of sexually transmitted illnesses, and a lack of school-aged children.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Katabalwa had his share of hardships.

“I was just like any other young kid who wasn’t attending school, but the lockdown made it impossible for them to earn money,” he told FGAE officials.

He subsequently promoted the idea of creating liquid soap to RHU’s youth section, and he is now a role model for other young people.

This is because he participated in RHU’s youth social enterprise model training two years ago, a program that teaches young people about health and how to start small businesses.

RHU’s youth are also given the opportunity to communicate about social enterprises and sexual reproductive health and rights (SRHR) using digital channels .

RHU is commended by Getachew Habtie, FGAE Executive Director, for its strong work relationships among personnel and for developing youth.

Getachew remarked that “RHU embraces the diversity of young people and empowers them for a better and brighter future.”

FGAE YAM Chairperson Hawi Shemeles, on the other hand, was equally pleased that young people could obtain services and training at the RHU office.

“It’s incredibly convenient to have all of the offices in one location. The RHU personnel, clinic, and youth center are all in one location for youth. This attracts young people, “Hawi explained.

The FGAE team of five is in Uganda for a three-day visit to RHU clinics in Katego and Luweero in order to benchmark and discuss best practices between RHU and FGAE. The two organisations offer SRHR services at a national level and are affiliated to the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) Africa region.

Aldon Walukamba G, the author, is the RHU Media Advocacy and Documentation Coordinator.

Bwaise Drop in Centre receives IPPFAR donations from RHU

The International Planned Parenthood Federation Africa Regional office (IPPFAR) has donated equipment worth 20 million shillings to the Bwaise Drop in Centre (DIC).

The equipment was provided in the presence of locals, their leadership, and the Empowered at Dusk Women Association (EADWA) administration and members by Reproductive Health Uganda (RHU), an affiliated member of IPPFAR.

RHU Executive Director Jackson Chekweko thanks IPPFAR’s leadership, led by Marie-Evelyne  Petrus-Barry, for fulfilling  her pledge during her visit to Uganda in November 2021.

He says the equipment will be used to improve women’s rights, empower the vulnerable, and create a safe environment for them to thrive.

“The equipment will not only provide women with the dignity and surroundings they deserve when they visit the center, but it will also encourage many of them to seek integrated sexual reproductive health and rights services in Bwaise RHU clinic, located 100 metres away in Bwaise, Kampala city,” said Chekweko.

The refurbished facility, according to Barbara Nanfuka, a coordinator and DIC beneficiary, will go a long way in helping disadvantaged women gain traction at accessing health services in a more conducive environment.

Richard Mboizi, Manager of the EADWA-run DIC, says he needs more help to respond to the growing number of 50 vulnerable people who come to the DIC every day for rest, comfort, and medication refills.

“The grants from the IPPFARO will be a huge help in our efforts to manage vulnerable persons and provide better services to our clients,” Mboizi added.

Ruth Nankya, a Bwaise II councilor for the Kampala City Council Authority (KCCA), praises IPPFAR’s assistance while requesting for more when support it comes to obtaining medical services, expertise, and administrative resources to protect Ugandans’ lives.

EADWA was created in 2008 by female sex workers who had been sexually and physically abused in the slums of Bwaise III parish in Kawempe division, Kampala district. They were also subjected to stigma and discrimination, notably in health care facilities.

A fifty-seater tent, a 40″ smart Hisense television screen, 21 seating chairs, two file cabins, six (6) CCTV cameras, three resting beds, and mattresses were among the items donated by Reproductive Health Uganda to EADWA from IPPFAR.

Aldon Walukamba G, the author, is the RHU Media Advocacy and Documentation Coordinator.

RHU combats FGM through increasing the economic position of community members.

Reproductive Health Uganda (RHU) and its partners organize intergenerational talks on the detrimental consequences of female genital mutilation (FGM) and child marriage in Uganda’s culturally affected female genital mutilation hotspots.

Together they have formed child protection clubs in communities, and integrated economic approaches such as teaching crafts and drama so that early marriage is not a default solution to alleviate financial hardship.

Dialogues with reformed circumcisers, religious leaders, and elders, according to RHU Medical and UNFPA Coordinator Demeter Margret Namuyobo, have advanced the abolition of female genital mutilation.

“Through these conversations, the girls, their parents, and community leaders learn more about how to detect, prevent, and counsel survivors of FGM in their own communities, but also improve their financial wellbeing” Namuyobo explained.

Since 2020, during the COVID -19 pandemic more than 1000 girls, women and men have benefited from the dialogues in Sebei and Karamoja sub region of Uganda.

But, according to Hon. Flavia Kabahenda Rwabuhoro, head of the Parliamentary Committee on Gender, Labour and Social Development, this isn’t enough, and she proposes a thorough review of all existing policies and legal frameworks in order to effectively combat GBV and its damaging practices.

“A number of policy papers and legal frameworks (GBV, FGM, and Child Acts) must be examined to address current gaps so that we can develop a comprehensive plan and initiatives to handle GBV cases,” Hon. Kabahenda stated.

She believes that in order to do so, she must first raise awareness about the importance of changing one’s thinking.

Some of the efforts are beginning to bear fruit, with some former cutters laying down their knives in order to put an end to FGM in Uganda.

Monica Cheptilak, a former cutter in Loro Village, hails from the Amudat district. She now opposes any parent who requests that she perform the rite on their child.

Most women are unaware that some of their health problems are linked to FGM, according to Cheptilak.

“They are uneducated, just as I was before attending instructional sessions that resulted to my denial of female genital mutilation,” she says.

The theme for the 2022 World zero tolerance to FGM is,” accelerating investment to end female genital mutilation”.

In 2021, the United Nations Women estimated that 4.16 million girls and women around the world would be subjected to genital mutilation. Furthermore, COVID-19 disruptions may have resulted in as many as 2 million additional cases of FGM by 2030 that would have been avoided otherwise. Together we can change this through taking proactive action, in 2022 against FGM in Uganda and the entire world. No girl or woman deserves to go through this torture.

Aldon Walukamba G, the author, is the RHU Media Advocacy and Documentation Coordinator.

In humanitarian response, RHU calls for a greater focus on adolescent sexual health needs.

According to Jackson Chekweko, Executive Director of Reproductive Health Uganda (RHU), humanitarian organizations must prioritize displaced adolescents’ sexual and reproductive health needs as soon as possible during a crisis to protect young people from sexual violence, sexually transmitted diseases, and early pregnancy.

Chekweko says that although relief agencies focus on providing food, water, and shelter for refugees in emergencies, the sexual and reproductive health needs of vulnerable displaced young people, particularly girls, are often overlooked or ignored entirely.

“We’re urging humanitarian organizations to include adolescent reproductive health services right from the start of any emergency response,” Chekweko told reporters at RHU headquarters.

With funding from the Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA), RHU, together with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the Office of the Prime Minister in Uganda (OPM), and Medical Teams International, collaborated on a two-year project in Adjumani and Kampala refugee settings.

According to Annet Kyarimpa, the RHU-DANIDA MoFA project lead and manager for safe motherhood, governments, donors, and humanitarian and development organizations in Uganda are effectively addressing adolescents’ sexual and reproductive health risks in crisis situations.

Members of refugee communities say the cost of not doing so or disregarding adolescent sexual and reproductive health (SRH) is enormous, especially in locations like Adjumani and Kampala, which have expanding and chronic refugee populations due to violence and natural catastrophes.

Young people are not only a significant subgroup, but they also make up the majority of the population in many conflict and post-conflict zones. More than half of the population in conflict zones like South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Somalia, Burundi, and Ethiopia is under the age of 20, according to Robert Andeoye, Pagirinya refugee camp Commandant.

Aldon Walukamba G, the author, is the RHU Media Advocacy and Documentation Coordinator.

Strategic Family Planning and Education Investment can ease SRHR Challenges

Reproductive Health Uganda (RHU) is pushing for more investment in family planning and education to reduce sexual reproductive health and rights (SRHR) challenges in Uganda.

While delivering the 2021 Alliance Week Address in the Kasese district, Jackson Chekweko, RHU Executive Director, said that Uganda has 77% young people, with at least 40% girls, but 25% of the girls aged 14 to 19 get pregnant.

Chekweko says that young people in Uganda should be protected from contracting sexually transmitted infections (STI’s), pregnancies, or impregnating others with the help of free family planning access and post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) services.

This can be achieved partly by increasing the family planning commodities budget allocated to the National Medical Stores (NMS). The 2021/2022 budget for NMS saw an increase of UGX 600.31 from UGX 420.31 billion in 2020/2021. However, only 20 billion shillings are allocated for purchasing family planning commodities. This accounts for a mere 3.332% of the total budget.

The Ministry of Health cost implementation plan two (CIP2) for 20/21/ to 24/25, pits the total demand for family planning commodities at 67%, but only 37% of women in Uganda access family planning products.

Charles Owekmeno, the National Coordinator of SRHR Alliance, believes that as the push for an increase in the family planning commodities budget allocation ensues, youths, especially girls, should be kept in school.

The most strategic investment in Uganda is to keep children in school to avoid the SRHR challenges in Uganda today.” “These include teenage pregnancies, sexually transmitted diseases, gender-based violence, and school dropouts, Owekmeno said.

The 2021 Alliance Week happened during the 16 Days of Activism for SRHR and family planning campaigns in Uganda. It was organized in the Kasese district by the RHU—Right Here, Right Now-2 (RHRH–2) project with its seven coalition members: Hope Mbale, CEHURD, Reach a Hand Uganda (RAHU), SMUG, SRHR Alliance, RHU, and UNYPA. The other Alliance Week 2021 consortium members under the SRHR Alliance in the Kasese district include Restless Development, NAFOPHANU, FLEP, and Straight Talk Uganda. The RHU

The RHRN-2 project, which targets young people aged 10 to 24, is funded by Rutgers International and the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA).

RHU launches Facebook – Inbox based Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Reproductive Health Uganda (RHU) during the Inter university dialogue (IUD) held yesterday at the International University of East Africa (IUEA) finally launched the long-awaited Artificial Intelligence (Ai) – Ask RHU.

Ask RHU is for now a Facebook messenger-based chat bot that provides instant responses to questions on Sexual reproductive health rights information and services (SRHRS), with ambitions of moving on to other platforms as What’s app, SMS and so on.

The timely innovation was solely developed by young people to address information gaps in the areas of SRHR. All steps of the development, from the naming, to topics, to the flow and outlook were all a collective of ideas by the young people.

Uganda has one of the youngest populations in the world with 78% being under 30years of Age. The country has also been hit by shocking numbers of teenage pregnancies especially during the lockdown, brought about by the pandemic. Experts warned that these were majorly because of lack of access to Sexual reproductive health information and services.

The internet is a useful source of SRHR information. In a study of internet use and coping, Reeves 2001 (How individuals coping with HIV/AIDS use the Internet) suggested that people living with HIV/AIDS who use the internet for health information seem better informed about HIV/AIDS and report more use of active coping strategies, including information seeking, and greater social support. In bid to increase the information dissemination of SRHR to the youth, RHU created the Ask RHU platform.

Social media has become an integral part of how people communicate, stay in touch, keep on top of new developments, and connect with the world around them. The youth make up the majority of the population in Uganda right now, and they are more interested in using social media. Therefore, one of the fastest ways to reach the youth and young people in Uganda is through social media.

According to the internet world statistics, Uganda has 3,328,000 Facebook subscribers out of 23 million who are on the internet as of December 2020. Ask RHU is specifically on Facebook messenger because many youths in Uganda access Facebook regularly. According to the social media statistics for the month of March 2021, Facebook is the most used platform in Uganda accounting for 59.58% usage.

The Ask RHU chatbot also provides confidentiality to the user. Many young people shy away from accessing various information on SRHR in fear of public perception.  The information shared by this chatbot can be retained by the user and so one can always refer and also share it. This platform similarly generates data to RHU basing on the most asked questions, the information searched and so identifies the gaps in SRHR programming which can be used to tailor and inform future programmes. The chatbot can be accessed from any part of the world as long as the user can access the internet.

Information and communication technology (ICT) represent an important new resource for enhancing the reach and effectiveness of SRHR programming.

Ask RHU is an AI or artificial intelligence that works through Facebook messenger to provide, accurate, instant information on SRHR and live locations for youth friendly spaces this innovation is here to feed into the gap that has been magnified by the COVID 19 pandemic, the lack of important information especially on SRHR and safe sex.

So ladies and gentlemen, this is ASK RHU, We hope it can revolutionaries and simplify access to information.

We are ambitious, and we continue to evolve and grow, the bot will continue to improve the more we use it. So please check it out, test it and see if it works, let us know if you have ideas to make it better.

Our next step after a successful run, is to launch on what’s app, and then SMS consequently. This has been made possible with support from @SafeHands_

Please do tell a friend to tell a friend.

IPPF Africa Regional Director Marie-Evelyne Petrus-Barry arrives in Uganda

Kampala, November 2021.

On Wednesday, International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) Africa Regional Director Marie-Evelyne Petrus-Barry arrived in Uganda  for a three-day official visit.

Petrus-Barry arrived in Kampala and headed to the Sheraton Hotel in Uganda with Ms. Mary Anne Waweru, Communications Officer, IPPF-Africa Regional Office, for a meeting with Jackson Chekweko, Reproductive Health Uganda (RHU) Executive Director (ED), and Dr. Charles Olaro, Ministry of Health Director of Clinical Services.

While in the country, Petrus – Barry is also expected to meet the RHU senior management team, young people, tour RHU Katego clinic and thereafter on her second-day head to RHU Bwaise clinic to visit and see the Moon Light Stars in the company of Jackson Chekweko RHU ED and Dr. Peter Ibembe RHU Director of Programs.

Petrus – Barry will also meet the RHU finance team, board Chairperson Nathan T. Kipande and treasurer, Dr. Jotham Musinguzi, the Director-General for the National Population Council (NPC), and the country representative for United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).

There is also a tentative plan for Petrus – Barry, to attend the Men’s day in Hoima district on 26th November 2021.

Jackson Chekweko RHU ED and Marie Evelyne Petrus Barry IPP Africa Region Director