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WHO UGANDA NEWS BULLETIN
Volume 1 Issue 20:October 2013
Uganda Commemorates Safe Motherhood Day 2013
The Speaker of Parliament The Right Honourable Rebecca Alitwala Kadaga delivering her speech. She was accompanied by
members of parliament from across the country
Kampala, 22nd October 2013: For the 8th consecutive year, problems include anaemia, severe forms of malaria, difficult
Uganda commemorated the Safe Motherhood Day with labour, pregnancy induced hypertension, fistula, low birth
weeklong activities that culminated into a national function weight babies, stillbirths, and death for the neonate and
held in Apac district. The function was presided over by the the mother.
Speaker of Parliament The Right Honourable Rebecca
Alitwala Kadaga under the theme “Teenage Pregnancy an Because most adolescent pregnancies are unwanted, there
obstacle to Safe Motherhood: Let us stop it now”.
is high temptation for abortion. Statistics show that about
15 to 23 percent of female youths aged between 15 and 24
It was a pertinent theme given that Uganda has one of the have had an abortion. In addition, 13 percent of maternal
highest teenage pregnancy rates in Sub-Saharan Africa. deaths and 27.8 percent of deaths among adolescents in
According to Uganda Demographic Health Survey (UDHS Uganda are primarily due to unsafe abortions.
2011), 24% of adolescent girls in Uganda become pregnant
There is a major concern here because abortion is illegal in
before the age of 19.
Uganda. In most cases, abortions are performed by
This has grave implications especially because adolescents untrained people in unsafe conditions as most of the
are likely to suffer from a number of health problems adolescents cannot afford the safe abortions by skilled
during
pregnancy
because
their
bodies
are
not yet health workers. This greatly increases the risk of disability,
1
physically mature to carry a pregnancy to full term. Such
For For
more
more
information
information
please
please
contact
contact
Benjamin
Benjamin
Sensasi,
Sensasi,
Health
Health
Promotion
Promotion
Advisor,
Advisor,
WHO
WHO
Country
Country
Office
Office
Tel 256-414-335500
Tel 256-414-335500
Email:
Email:
sensasib@ug.afro.who.int
sensasib@.who.int
WHO UGANDA NEWS BULLETIN
Volume 1 Issue 20:October 2013
Honourable Sarah Opendi, Minister of State for Health (PHC)
delivering her speech.
Mrs Liliane Luwaga, Senior Health Educator welcoming the Speaker to
the MoH Stall
and death that contributes to Uganda’s unacceptable high for Health (Primary Health Care ) Honourable Sarah Opendi
maternal mortality rate.
who
said: “We need
a platform
where all stakeholders
focus more on preventing the causes of teenagepregancies
Reflecting on the theme, Honourable Kadaga advised and their consequencies. One of the key platforms is to
teenagers to abstain from sex, concentrate on studies and advocate for the youth to abstain from early sexual
stay longer in school as one of the best ways of avoiding
engagements. Others are: attending and completing school,
teenage pregnancies. At the same time, Honourable Kadaga
preventing early marriages and accessing youth friendly
castigated some parents who marry off their adolescent
services for inormation and counselling” .
daughters instead of living them in school and local leaders
who fail to address the problem in their localities.
Luckily, Sexual and Adolescent Health is one of the priority
Honourable Kadaga informed the public that one of the programs of the Ministry of Health as spelt out in the
cardinal objectives of the current 9th Parliament which Health Sector Strategic and Investment plan (HSSIP). The
must be achieved if everything else fails is to solve the HSSIP lays out strategies and actions for various
problem of high maternal mortality in Uganda. She stakeholders to address the Reproductive Health for all
therefore enumerated a number of measures undertaken segments of society including the adolescents leading to
by the Government of Uganda which, if implemented, will improved outcomes.
go a long way in addressing the underlying determinants of
teenage pregnancies and lead to the attainment of the
parliamentary objective.
This
fact
was
not
lost
on
the
UNFPA
Resident
Representative Ms Esperance Fundira who represented the
United Nations family at the commemoration. She called for
But addressing the underlying determinants of the Teenage
pregnancies is a collective effort. It is critical that the
different actors play their role in stopping the vice.
“a social movement to prevent forced early-marriages and
teenage pregnancies” adding that “in this social movement,
everybody and every institution is responsible and has a
role to play in preventing, managing and mitigating teenage
pregnancy and forced early-marriages.
Indeed this point was emphasised by the Minister of State
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For more information please contact Benjamin Sensasi, Health Promotion Advisor, WHO Country Office Tel 256-414-335500 Email: sensasib@.who.int
WHO UGANDA NEWS BULLETIN
Volume 1 Issue 20:October 2013
The Right Honourable Rebecca Kadaga, signing a plaque to
reaffirm her commitment to Safe Motherhood.
The UNFPA Resident Representative Ms Esperance Fundira
delivering a speech on behalf of the UN
Ms Fundira also made a promise and a commitment to the •
All pregnant teenagers must attend at least 4 Antenatal
Government of Uganda and its adolescents. “The UN stands
Care visits to monitor the pregnancy and guidance on
ready to partner with you all and the key stakeholders in
birth preparedness.
making our contribution to address the problem of teenage •
pregnancy and forced early-marriages in Uganda. In this
All pregnant teenagers should deliver under skilled care
way, we can drastically reduce maternal deaths by reducing
easier to access emergency obstetric care in case of
the number of girls who become pregnant, and thereby
complications during childbirth
that is a midwife or doctor in a health facility where it is
promote safe motherhood” she said.
and politicians As if on cue, all the exbitions and services offered at the
commemoration venue revolved around these messages. To
requested for urgent rehabilitation of the district hospital,
functionality of health centre IVs, in addition to proper the adolocsents the messages were: delay sex; delay
equipping and adequate staffing. Honourable Kadaga who marriage; and delay first pregnancy and these will be
On
their
part,
Apac district
leaders
later visited the hospital agreed to these requests and
repeated at every opportunity thoughout the year. It is
promised to forward them to the appropriate authorities.
hoped that this will lead to a Uganda where every
pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe and every
Ultimately it is the Government of Uganda that must young person’s potential is fulfilled.
ensure that the quality of health services is improved and
that youth friendly services are availed to all. Six core
messages
delivered
by
Honourable
Sarah
Opendi
encapasulated this commitment:
•
All adolescents must abstain from sex until they are old
enough (over 18 years)
•
Schools should provide sexuality education to students
starting from upper primary in order to help them
manage different peer pressures that influence them to
early sex practicing
•
Say no to early sexual relationships.
•
Young mothers should be encouraged to go back to
school.
Students from the School of Nursing Apac Demonstrating Safe
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Delivery of a child .
For more information please contact Benjamin Sensasi, Health Promotion Advisor, WHO Country Office Tel 256-414-335500 Email: sensasib@.who.int