Mityana 5th May 2016 - On April 29th, Uganda commemorated World Health Day a few weeks after the designated 7th April of every year. The function was held at Banda Sub-county Headquarters in Mityana district under the theme “Beat Diabetes: Scale up prevention, Strengthen Care and Enhance Surveillance “.

Free health checks for Body Mass Index, diabetes, hypertension, malaria and others were the major highlights of the event that attracted hundreds of people.  This was not surprising though because Non-communicable Diseases (NCDs) are now among the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in the district. According to the District Vice Chairman, the district has 776 registered people with Diabetes of whom 210 are men and boys while 16 are children with juvenile diabetes.

The NCDs situation in Mityana is indeed a reflection of the entire country. In the past 10 years, the prevalence of NCDs has rapidly increased and currently NCDs are among the top 10 main causes morbidity and mortality in Uganda. According to the Director General of Health Services, Dr Jane Ruth Aceng, in 2008, 1.3%(208,000) of Ugandans aged 18 to 64 years had type 2 diabetes; 23,000 children had type 1 diabetes; and only 9.5% of the people with abnormal fasting blood sugar were aware of their condition. 

That situation calls for action especially promotion of awareness on prevention and control of Non-communicable diseases, which is in line with this year’s theme. “Please advise our people to avoid unhealthy diets, tobacco, alcohol and physical inactivity,” Dr Aceng counselled. 

However, government efforts are not geared towards prevention only, but provision of a continuum of care

including diagnosis, treatment, rehabilitation and palliative care for NCDs. As such a number of health workers have been trained on diagnosis of NCDs, several health facilities equipped with diagnostic tools and there are medicine such as free insulin for the sick.  The focus is on “prevention, early detection and treatment as Dr Aceng aptly put it.

Being World Health Day, the Minister of Health Dr Elioda Tumwesigye’s message encompassed the entire health spectrum and not just NCDs. Delivering what he called “President Museveni’s Seven Tips for Better Health”, Dr Tumwesigye urged all Ugandans to always eat well and exercise regularly; ensure childhood immunization; observe hygiene and sanitation; and to fight Malaria, TB and other infectious diseases. Other tips were to avoid alcohol, tobacco, drugs abuse and accidents; avoid irresponsible sex and to prepare for the consequences of sex; going for regular medical check-ups and seeking care from qualified health workers. That, Dr Tumwesigye said, “is the essence of World Health Day”.

Dr Hafsa Kasule from WHO delivered the Regional Director’s message on behalf of the WHO Representative. The message emphasised the need for prevention, early diagnosis, public awareness and integrated services delivery “to tackle the rising problem of diabetes in Africa.”

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For more information, please contact:

Mwebembezi Edmond, Public Information Officer, Tel: +256 414 335569, Cel: +256 782 962674, Email: mwebembezie [at] who.int (mwebembezie[at]who[dot]int)