KAMPALA —In the wake of COVID-19 and Ebola, experts have called on Ugandan authorities to be better prepared for the next health threats and emergencies.
These calls are driven by a sense that some of outbreaks such as Ebola in Mubende could have been foreseen and prevented, or that the spread could have been more effectively contained causing less social and economic disruption and averting deaths.
Such calls have been made in the past and have resulted in meaningful action.
This is a concern: although the timing and nature of the next pandemic spark is unknowable, it is certain to happen.
Dr. Louis Kamulegeya, Projects and Research Manager at Rocket Health who spoke during a Monday night Twitter Spaces, explained that COVID-19 brought into sharp focus the limitations of past efforts and the need for a more ambitious and sustained approach to preparedness.
Dr. Kamulegeya said the COVID-19 pandemic revealed deeply rooted structural weaknesses in our health, socioeconomic, and political systems — calling for a need to build synergies through arrangements such as public private partnerships.
“Arrangement such as PPP [Public Private Partnerships would have saved many Ugandans during the COVID-19 pandemic period,” Dr. Kamulegeya said, also noting that government needs to work with private players in many areas.
“Government needs to be responsive and quickly think about circumstances under which they can allow tax waivers on different medical supplies. During the pandemic, institutions that manufactur Oxygen needed support in terms of tax waiver so that they can produce to their full capacity, but at some point, those responsible delayed to act,” Dr. Kamulegeya, whose organization is a leading telemedicine provider said.
Dr. Arnold Ezama, the Manager Epidemics and Pandemic Preparedness and Response at Uganda Red Cross said it is encouraging to see widespread calls for more financing, a reform of governance for health-related crises, and fresh thinking around public goods.
He also submitted that both epidemics and pandemics always get a soft landing in areas and communities where there’s inadequacies in terms of education.
“We need to see leadership especially at local levels. We also need utilize social capital at local levels to increase awareness,” Dr. Ezama said.
He also said that prepared also requires strong and resilient health systems, in particular primary care, to facilitate detection of disease outbreaks, provide essential care, and support deployment of vaccines and other medical countermeasures.
“It also requires surveillance systems and laboratory capacity to detect both human and zoonotic disease outbreaks. The mechanisms are needed for coordination across sectors for prevention and preparedness,” he said, also mentioning that need for well-functioning supply-chains as well as adequate stockpiles of essential goods and equipment.
Experts said that Uganda, just like many other low- and middle-income countries, have long-standing weaknesses in these preparedness domains, which translate into weaknesses.
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