Uganda

The Republic of Uganda is a land-locked country located in East Africa. Bounded by Kenya to the east, Tanzania and Rwanda to the south, the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Sudan to the north, Uganda has a populations of 28,816,000. The country boasts substantial natural resources, making agriculture the most important sector of the economy—over 80% of the work force takes part in some aspect. After many years of economic chaos and civil unrest, Uganda's strong growth caused poverty to decline steadily, though not equitably across all regions. The challenges facing Ugandans in the north of the country, an area plagued by conflict, have been particularly challenging.

Uganda is beleaguered by health problems including high rates of malaria, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malnutrition, infant mortality, and maternal mortality. Malaria is endemic in 95% of Uganda; the disease is the leading cause of the country's morbidity and mortality and is responsible for up to 40% of outpatient visits, 25% of hospital admissions, and 14% of hospital deaths. The burden of malaria is greatest among children under five years of age and pregnant women; the average life expectancy is 48 for males and 51 for females.

In late June 2005, the United States Government announced a new five-year, $1.2 billion initiative—the President's Malaria Initiative (PMI)—to rapidly scale up malaria prevention and treatment interventions in high-burden countries in sub-Sahara Africa. Uganda was selected as one of the initial three countries to take part in the initiative.

The PMI supports national programs and strategies for malaria, in collaboration with the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, the Roll Back Malaria Partnership, and the World Bank Malaria Booster Program. The PMI procures drugs and other commodities and supports logistics, management, communication, and training. It also includes comprehensive monitoring and evaluation, targeted operational research to improve on-the-ground implementation, and detailed reporting of inputs, outcomes, results, and impact.

The National Drug Authority (NDA) of Uganda monitors the efficacy and safety of pharmaceuticals and other regulated health products entering the country, overseeing quality control, pharmacovigilance, post-marketing surveillance, and drug information. The NDA has a limited capacity to perform these functions, however, due to a need for additional human and financial resources. As part of the plan, PMI is providing the NDA with financial support to increase its ability to ensure the quality and efficacy of malaria-related provisions necessary to implement this Initiative.

USAID asked USP DQI to support Uganda in efforts to assure the quality of antimalarial drugs within PMI. USP DQI completed an assessment of the country's National Drug Quality Control Laboratory in June 2006, made recommendations for specific areas of improvement, and submitted workplans to USAID-Uganda Mission who is providing financial support. In Fall 2006, USP DQI assisted the NDA and the Lab to procure medicines, install necessary laboratory equipment and train laboratory staff on Good Laboratory Practices and major testing methods. USP DQI also taught the staff how to properly use and maintain the laboratory equipment in order to effectively analyze the quality of antimalarial drugs and insecticides used for malaria control in Uganda.

Credit: Roll Back Malaria (RBM), World Health Organization, U.S. Agency for International Development, CIA Factbook