UCAA’s Finance Director, Hassan Musinguzi explained that the contention is in the new rent figure of US$15 per square metre following a valuation by the Chief Government Valuer.

“When they [ENHAS and DAS] occupied in 2022, we gave draft agreements which figure they contested and at that point, we sought guidance from Chief Government Valuer who lowered the value from US$15 to US$8.

Musinguzi added that, ‘we disputed that because the previous figure was US$7. We cannot have an increment for the new facilities of US$1 only’.

He said that the two handling companies also disputed the US$15 and appealed.

“However, they have concession agreements. We billed the companies and MENZIS paid at the old rate of US$7 as we wait for further guidance from the chief government valuer,” Musinguzi said.

UCAA’s Director General Fred Bamwesigye justified the increment of rent saying that the new cargo centre eases the business of the companies.

“We asked the Chief Government Valuer to review but when he returned the figure, it was disappointing and we could not accept.  We have a meeting with the Chief Government Valuer and the companies and we want the valuer to give us valuation based on how the new facilities eases their businesses,” said Bamwesigye.

This prompted Committee Chairperson, Hon. Medard Sseggona to question the parameters used by the Government Chief Valuer to reduce the rent amount.

“Can you share with us the valuation from the Chief Government Valuer and the final returns because it is really disturbing. In the meantime, on what terms are they [ENHAS and DAS] occupying? They should not have moved from the old to the new without having agreed on the amount,” said Sseggona.

He added that once the committee reviews the necessary documents, a decision will be taken, which may include interfacing with the Chief Government Valuer.

“We will decide whether the Chief Government Valuer comes here to tell us how you value because there is what we call a margin of error, but a margin of error cannot go to US$7,” Sseggona said adding that, ’the Chief Government Valuer is an internal government officer who guides you when you are negotiating; nothing stops you from charging even US$30 as long as you are not charging below what the government valuer has returned’.

Hon. Yusuf Nsibambi (FDC, Mawokoto County South) pointed out that the law does not mandate the Chief Government Valuer to fix prices for cargo handling services.

“You can do it independently with the companies or you go out to seek further guidance, which is okay. You cannot go back to the valuer to review; you cannot go back to the person who gave a lower figure,” he said.

The new Cargo terminal is a self-contained facility approximately, 6,700 square metres and has capacity of 100,000 tonnes with parking apron, landside and airside access roads and cooling facilities.

According to the allocation, EHNAS and DAS occupy 80 percent of the cargo terminal building.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Parliament of the Republic of Uganda.

To improve the sensitivity of polio detection and response, the Ministry of Health with technical support from the World Health Organisation(WHO), recently established established Environmental Surveillance(ES) for the country.

Environmental Surveillance is the regular collection of sewage or wastewater that is contaminated with human faecal matter and testing the samples for the presence or absence of poliovirus. Environmental Surveillance can detect poliovirus transmission even in the absence of polio cases among humans and can provide additional justification for the elimination and certification of poliovirus transmission.

“Going by the recent upsurge in the outbreak of circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus in the region, the WHO is determined to improve polio surveillance for early detection and response. Lesotho has become the 44th country in the region to initiate Environmental Surveillance”, says Dr. Hamisu Walla, Environmental Surveillance (ES) Consultant and ES focal point at WHO AFRO.

Malekhetho Motenalapi, National Surveillance Officer at the Ministry of Health said this new system will complement the existing Acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) surveillance.

“The Ministry of Health is excited that ES has finally been established in Lesotho. Given that many tourists are visiting Lesotho from Polio endemic countries, the ES will complement (AFP) surveillance by increasing the sensitivity of poliovirus detection. The system can be upgraded later to detect other pathogens of importance”, says Motenalapi.

The African region started implementing ES in Nigeria in 2011 and with gradual expansion, the number of countries implementing ES by the end of 2023 was 42 out of the 47 countries in the region. In April 2024, ES was established in Lesotho with two functional sample collection sites.

The World Health Organization (WHO) aims to improve polio surveillance for early detection and response. Lesotho has become the 44th country in the region to initiate Environmental Surveillance.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of World Health Organization (WHO) – Lesotho.

On 20 June 2024, the World Health Organization (WHO) Representative to Namibia, Dr. Richard Banda paid a courtesy visit to the Minister of Health and Social Services, Honorable Dr. Kalumbi Shangula. The meeting aimed to cement the existing partnership between the Ministry of Health and Social Services and WHO under the new leadership and affirm commitments to ensuring health for all.    

Honorable Dr. Shangula warmly welcomed Dr. Banda to Namibia, highlighting the close partnership between the Ministry of Health and Social Services (MoHSS) and WHO. He applauded WHO for its unwavering support to the ministry, saying that “as a ministry, we are actively engaged and participating in WHO work. We participate in various consultations with WHO regarding the review of the International Health Regulations and the drafting Pandemic Accord among others”.

During the meeting, Dr. Banda commented the Government of Namibia for the tremendous progress in addressing to public health issues. “We have seen remarkable progress in the HIV response, with the country achieving the 90-90-90 targets. We are now aiming for the 95-95-95 target. If kept on track, Namibia will be able to end AIDS by 2030 and be among the first countries to do so” he remarked. Additionally, he congratulated Namibia for its key milestones achievement in eliminating mother-to-child transmission of HIV and Hepatitis B. 

Minister Shangula noted the challenges posed by conspiracies in the HIV response within the community. He emphasized the government’s commitment to implementing effective health programs, starting with the elimination of mother-to-child transmission of HIV, which was fully funded by the government and supported by partners.  “The results achieved by the program are promising, but we are still striving to meet the elimination targets” he added.

The discussion further highlighted the increasing burden of non-communicable diseases (NCD) and the need for increased investment in NCD and reduction in risk factors. Currently, WHO is supporting MoHSS in reviewing the Tobacco Products Control Act of 2010, to ensure a comprehensive legal and policy framework for tobacco control.

 Additionally, the two leaders noted the success in polio eradication with reference to the successful management of the 2005 polio outbreak. The country’s progress in improving Tuberculosis (TB) indicators was also highlighted. 

WHO reiterated its commitment to supporting the Government of Namibia in addressing public health challenges and enhancing the Ministry’s efforts to ensuring universal health coverage.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of World Health Organization (WHO) – Namibia.

In October and November 2023, Kyotera district, in southern Uganda, reported a ‘strange’ illness in different communities. Those who contracted the “illness” presented with blisters, fever, rashes, headache, muscle pain and swelling of limbs. In total,  75 people contracted the disease (17 confirmed, 07 probable, 51 suspected) and 13 lost their lives. The community,  out of fear, hired a prominent leader of traditional healers in the region to help get rid of the misfortune, at a fee of 2.5 million shillings (about USD 640).

“The traditional healer attributed the misfortune to witchcraft by the family of one of our deceased community leaders.  The community was incensed and insisted that his widow leaves the village. The widow contacted police, which in turn involved  health authorities,” said Steve Kiggundu, the LC1 Chairperson of Kyemayembe village.

On 29 November 2023, with WHO’s technical support in the investigation and sample collection processes, health authorities in Kyotera district confirmed an outbreak of anthrax, a disease that is common in domestic animals, including cows, sheep, and goats. The government swiftly imposed restrictions on the movement of animals and consumption of animal products in the district.

The locals were hesitant to believe that anthrax was a medical condition. This mistrust greatly affected effectiveness and uptake of the initial interventions by health authorities. Following concerted efforts by the Ministry of Health with technical support from WHO, the locals started embracing positive health-seeking behaviour. The technical support covered anthropological interventions which included social behavioural insights study whose findings helped the response understand and demystify the beliefs and practices where over 70% of the affected households were seeking health services from shrines. WHO also supported targeted risk communication engagements with key influencers, affected families, key stakeholders and communities in the hotspots. This contributed to a turnaround in health seeking behavior from the shrines to health facilities by over 80% of the cases.

“We sensitized the communities, involving key influencers like community leaders, police, and traditional healers to change the community’s mindset. We wanted them to appreciate that in as much as there are conditions that  they might be able to handle, anthrax is not one of them. They agreed  to carry along information, education, and communication materials and display them at their places of work,” said Kintu E. Max, the Kyotera district Health Educator.

“Most people in our village don’t believe that someone can fall sick or die because of natural occurrences. Most of the misfortune is usually  attributed to witchcraft. We were losing our colleagues and we wanted answers from our leaders on what was killing the people,” narrated Geoffrey Ssenkima, an anthrax survivor in Kyemayembe.

To boost the targeted engagements and promote health seeking from health facilities further, WHO mobilized and worked with survivors. Testimonies and sight of these survivors facilitated the community to appreciate anthrax as a preventable and treatable disease, but not witchcraft. Initially, there were false claims that whenever an infected person sought treatment at a health facility, they would pass on. However, after seeing survivors who were treated in health facilities, the locals started looking out for the signs and symptoms of anthrax, reporting suspected cases, and seeking treatment from health facilities.

“I was one of those who initially strongly resisted treatment in health facilities. However, after recovering, I decided to share the good news with the rest of the community,” said Ssenkima.

WHO also supported the efforts of the Government of Uganda and partners in building community structures, coordinating the response (response plan development, partner coordination and guiding district task force meetings), surveillance (field investigations, active case search, alert management) and laboratory systems (sample collection and management). Support was also extended to case management and infection prevention&control (capacity building of health workers).

“Outbreaks start and end in the community. Therefore, community participation is key to addressing public health emergencies. There is need for sustained investments in community interventions to ensure ownership and support in preventing, detecting, and responding to disease outbreaks,” said Dr. Yonas Tegegn Woldemariam, WHO Representative to Uganda.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of World Health Organization – Uganda.