RECENT press reports, which resurrected old safety concerns about nevirapine are deceptive, insincere and meant to mislead. They could not have been in the best interest of children or HIV-positive mothers. Reports by the Associated Press (Las Vegas Sun, December 15, 2004) hyped on the death of one Joyce Ann Hafford, w
Every year, we request readers to name their best and worst personalities, events and issues. Early this month, we distributed the questionnaire in the newspaper. The readers returned a total of 6,220 entries, of which 4,160 were analysed. The rest were disqualified for various forms of dishonesty. Man of the Year
POLICE officers should guard against spending money on beer and women, the outgoing Kayunga district Police commander (DPC) has said, writes Kibuuka Lumu. James Tarushokye, who has been transferred to Lira district as the district police commander, was on Monday addressing officers at Kayunga police station. He said la
APAC - The district has received sh87m from the Uganda AIDS Commission for Community-Based Organisations (CBOs) to sensitise the community on the AIDS epidemic. The district secretary for works, Chris Opio, was recently handing over the cheques to CBO chairpersons at Omodi Hostel in the town.
THE prestigious Uganda Open Tennis tournament has been revived after a four- year break. Uganda Tennis Association (UTA) has listed the Uganda Open on its 2005 calendar released last week. The tournament that used to attract players from Uganda, Kenya and Rwanda went into lim
A stronger than expected shilling and intermittent power cuts in 2004 dominated the economy, but load shedding will get worse in 2005, analysts have said. The shilling s fortunes will give way to the launching of the Customs Union (CU) on Saturday, which will be the next most significant factor in the economy. In 2004,
THE Christian Children s Fund (CCF), with funding from the Global Fund, has initiated a programme to reinforce parent-to-child communication and promote home-based care for people living with HIV/AIDS. This will be achieved through drama on the northern-based FM radio stations. The CCF national co-ordinator of the Glob
By the time Philly Lutaya sang Alone and Frightened he looked frail. His limbs were shaky, his face had spots and his hairs were thin. His appearance on the stage sent tears down revellers eyes. It was the typical appearance that gave AIDS the name slim. Today, the most known Ugandan living with HIV/AIDS is Major Rubar
UCHUMI Supermarket has donated relief items worth over sh3m to internally displaced people (IDPs) in Lira district. The Uchumi country manager, David Njenga, handed the items over to Grace Loumo, the director of Rescue for orphans and Widows of AIDS and War, Elderly and the Disabled (ROWAWED). The items included foodst
RAKAI Democratic Party (DP) chairman Joseph Kabugu has warned residents against joining the Forum for Democratic Chan-ge (FDC), reports Ali Mambule. Kabugu, also chairman of Kalisizo sub-county, said FDC had few supporters and sympathisers. He said this at a party for Kalisizo hospital staff at the hospital premises.
HAVE you been accidentally exposed to HIV infection? This may be through sex, rape or being pricked by a contaminated sharp object like a needle or when one cuts oneself with a razor blade. Get to the nearest health centre as soon as possible. The doctor will carry out an HIV test before prescribing emergency Anti-retr
AN Australian firm, Bayline Service, in collaboration with Project Africa, a local organisation, has donated medical equipment worth US$500,000 (about Sh.) to Uganda . Handing over equipment to the Minister of State for Primary Health Care, Dr. Alex Kamugisha, at the Ministry of Health headquarters in Kampala recently,
THIS year has left sweet and sour tastes in the mouths of Ugandan politicians. Many have walked away happier than they were before the year began. Others have been wounded in a manner that will take ages to heal. This was a year of successful and failed talks. This was a year of underhand political deals, including wha
THE Vice-President Prof. Gilbert Bukenya has hailed Emmanuel Cardinal Wamala for his firm stand against the use of condoms to fight HIV/AIDS. Addressing Christians at Rubaga Cathedral on Christmas during the 10:00 O clock service, Bukenya appealed to Ugandans to be just in whatever they do and to learn to give credit w
LATELY, some people have begun to wonder whether President Yoweri Museveni is really a revolutionary democrat or just another African Big Man, writes Laurie Goering of The Chicago Tribune Eighteen years ago, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni seized this nation devastated by endless war and set about transforming it int
THE country director for GTZ, Dorothee Hutter, has said the agency did not supply the 10 million defective Engabu condoms. We have had nothing to do with Engabu condoms for the last five years. We did not provide money to purchase the condoms. We are an agency for technical cooperation and we do not manufacture condoms
WHO are virgins? came the totally unexpected question from our eight-year-old. We are getting used to these surprising, but terribly frank, and innocent, sessions. Nothing could have prepared me for a question on virginity from this baby! As the children read newspapers, magazines, novels and the internet, as they list
THE HIV/AIDS battle has been taken to the lodges and hotels. The Alliance of Mayors and Municipal leaders on HIV/AIDS in Africa (AMICAALL) wants a bye-law for lodges and hotels to provide condoms to their customers. The Uganda AMICAALL members said providing the condoms could prevent HIV. The mayors and municipal l
Those using fake HIV tests to acquire free HIV/AIDS drugs and sell them on the blackmarket should watch out. The Government is to investigate whether some people were using false HIV/AIDS test results to get antiretroviral (ARV) drugs. Health state minister Dr. Alex Kamugisha said this while presenting a statement to P
THE National Drug Authority (NDA) is to test condoms regardless of their brand, health minister Brig. Jim Muhwezi (right) has said. Under the new condom distribution policy, post-shipment testing for condoms becomes another requirement. In a statement to parliament on reports that the Engabu condoms had a foul smell an
People have been advised to abstain from sex and only use the condom if they cannot. state minister for regional cooperation Augustine Nshimye Sebutulo said condoms should be used as a last resort in the fight against HIV/AIDS. The safest way by international communities was to use the condom but thanks to our presiden
Bayline aids Mulago KAMPALA - An Australian firm, Bayline Service, in collaboration with Project Africa, a local organisation, has donated medical equipment worth $500,000 to Uganda . Handing over the equipment to Dr Alex Kamugisha, the State Minister for Primary Health Care at the Ministry of Health Headquarters in Ka
THE health ministry is putting people s lives at risk by failing to provide them with condoms, MPs have said. State minister for primary health care Alex Kamugisha was yesterday asked to explain why there is a shortage of condoms, especially during this festive season. Kamugisha, who represented health minister Jim Muh
LAST Christmas, a woman in Bushenyi district cut off her husband s penis in a domestic fight. The same day, a man in Busedde sub-county, Jinja district, set a witchdoctor s shrine ablaze. He wanted sh1,000 for drinking but the witchdoctor would not give it to him. On Boxing Day, two drunken revellers drowned at Nabugab
Let us break the cycle of domestic violence this festival season by making sure that every man, woman and child enjoys their right to a peaceful celebration. The emotional strain of the celebrations, combined with increased drinking and the lack of usual routine such as work, all contribute to a rise in violence. In an
A ROW over the election of Stanley Ntagari as Bishop of Masindi-Kitara Diocese has ended. A section of the laity contested the election, saying the procedures were illegal. John Majara, Ernest Kiiza and Jacob Karubanga petitioned the High Court to nullify the election but the case was dismissed with costs. The Court of
EMERGING barefooted from a grass-thatched shrine, United States Ambassador Jimmy Kolker called for integration of traditional medicine into the fight against AIDS. Kolker travelled to remote Kawuku village, Nakifuma, Mukono, 60km east of Kampala on December 5, where he visited a traditional healer, Henry Kasule. He sat
A Virgins Club has been formed in Kasese with the support of the district chairman, Yokasi Bihande, who said abstinence was the only sure way to fight HIV/AIDS. Bihande, who offered sh2m to the club, said the idea would be introduced in schools in the district. Young girls and boys should be encouraged to say a big no
THE First Lady, Janet Museveni, yesterday attacked people who claim that abstinence from pre-marital sex is impractical. Museveni insisted that abstinence is the best preventive measure for youths, while faithfulness is vital for married people as ways of combating HIV/AIDS. She said people living with HIV/AIDS should
KITGUM district recently passed out another batch of 1,325 of frontier guards, the local militia recruited to fight alongside the UPDF to end the northern insurgency. Sports state minister Henry Okello Oryem presided over the ceremony at the 503 Brigade Headquarters at Pajimo barracks. Oryem pledged that Kitgum leaders
THE Government has been asked to address the condom shortage in the country before the Christmas festivals, Nakasongola LC5 chairman Chris Bagonza has said. Bagonza said this recently at the district s World AIDS day celebrations at the district headquarters. The Government should devise all means to make sure that the
NATIONAL Council of Sports (NCS) administrative officer has appealed to peer educated to remain united and share knowledge in order to achieve the goal of fighting HIV/ AIDS epidemic in the country. Timothy Magala made the call over the week-end at the official closing of a three-day workshop to train peer educators in
YOU are poor because you do not think harder. Betty Rutare Byanyima of Hope for harvest, a Christian charitable organisation, sold old newspapers and used the proceeds to buy 40 goats for women to eradicate poverty from their homes. While handing over 40 goats to members of Hope for Harvest, Byanyima said: Women in Buk
THE Government has dismissed fears about condom shortage. There is no crisis with condoms. There are enough safe condoms in the country. Arrangements are in place to ensure that there is a continuous supply of safe condoms, health minister Brig. Jim Muhwezi told a press conference on Friday at the ministry boardroom.
The health ministry has been accused of influencing appointments on the $80m global fund project committee, reports Herbert Ssempogo. The Anti-Corruption Coalition Uganda coordinator, Dr. Geoffrey Rwakabale, said the ministry influenced the appointment of Dr. Tiberus Muheebwa as project co-ordinator of the Global Fund
UGANDA has been plunged into a condom crisis. Government withdrew Engabu condoms that had holes and a bad smell. Now every batch of condoms has to be tested on arrival into Uganda before it is approved. Even brands that have no problem are suffering. There is a shortage because condoms that would have been distributed
NEBBI district will get a fully-stocked hospital, the minister of State for Health New Vision - December 20, 2004, Capt. Mike Mukula has said. Mukula was at celebrations to mark the carving of Pader district from Kitgum district, at the district headquarters on Tuesday. The Government will build one big hospital in Pad
It is not a stage drama where he plays the political hero. Veteran stage actor and radio presenter, Ali Ndawula, last week trounced four other contestants to become the Member of Parliament for Bamunanika constituency in Luweero district. Drama is a representation of life on stage. Art in Uganda is politics
Culture is the main challenge in the fight against HIV/AIDS in Mayuge district. The district chairperson of people living with HIV/AIDS, William Atubo, said the communities were ignorant about the scourge, adding that people always suspect that the victim is bewitched. He said this recently while commissioning over 70
THE Government has disbursed about sh40b to fight poverty through community development programmes in 18 districts in the north, east, Karamoja and West Nile regions. The State Minister for Northern Uganda , Grace Akello, has said. The north is struggling to overcome the effects of the war and social and economic margi
ROAD builders are to be sensitised on HIV/AIDS, reports Martin Kizza. THE National guidance and empowerment of People living with HIV/AIDS in Uganda (NGEN) and Sord Bonel international, an Israel-based Road construction Company, have embarked on the three-year campaign. The beneficiaries include builders of the Karuma-
MPs have called upon the ministry of health to streamline the procedures of importing condoms so that more condoms could be provided during the festive season. The New vision this week reported that condom shortage was expected nationwide because the government s Engabu brand had been frozen and the procedures for appr
PARENTS should restrain their daughters from circumcision dancing processions (kadodi), Mbale LC5 chairman Bernard Mujasi has advised. He said the kadodi exposed the youth, especially girls, to sex-related activities. Parents should restrain girls from kadodi because it involves sick and frustrated people who rape or d
THE AIDS Support Organisation (TASO) has embarked on an expansion programme upcountry, establishing regional care and support centres for HIV/AIDS clients in Masindi and Gulu towns. TASO executive director Dr. Alex Coutinho said this brings the centres countrywide to five, after Mulago, Mbale and Mbarara. In a speech r
THE US Agency for International development (USAID) has injected US$150,000 (sh262.5m) to address the education of HIV/AIDS orphans and vulnerable children in Lira, Gulu and Katakwi districts. The one-year project will be monitored by the Core Initiative and Hope for African Children (HACI). The HACI grants deputy mana
MASINDI district has secured enough condoms to avert the looming crisis caused by a countrywide shortage of acceptable condoms. The district health educator, William Kajura, said although the Government’s Engabu brand had been frozen and the procedure for approving new imports lengthened, Masindi would not be affected
THE food was good. Drinks, cake and ice- cream flowed endlessly and so did the fun. The children were having a merry time at the National Theatre gardens on December 12. What made this one exclusive was that it was organised by local artistes for children living with HIV. So, it is not just about showbiz and pomp for o
MANY people think virginity is for girls only, but a number of boys are promising to lock their zips till marriage. Elvina Nawaguna talked to some of them. Faisal Osiga, 19, Athlete: When my uncle died, he left his kids with no help, so I decided to abstain so that my children can have the care they need. Sometimes pee
FLORENCE Mukasa, a deaf mother of five came to know about HIV/AIDS in 1994, when her uncle and aunt died from a mysterious illness. Nobody explained to her the cause of their deaths. Mukasa, a resident of Gayaza in Kampala, had depended on the scanty HIV/AIDS information from her five primary-school-going children.
MASAKA - a memorandum of understanding to cooperate on research, construction and rehabilitation of health centres has been signed between Masaka district local government and the British Medical Research Council (MRC). The MRC head of programme, Dr Heiner Grosskurth the Masaka chief administrative officer, Yusuf Ssent
A Sudanese government team is in the country to study Uganda s strategies of fighting HIV/AIDS. the Sudanese health minister, Dr. Ahmed Bilal Osman, said the number of people living with HIV/AIDS was growing, especially among the youth, women and children because of the conflict in southern Sudan. We have more HIV/AIDS
A condom shortage is expected nationwide because the Government s Engabu brand has been frozen and the procedure for approving new imports has been lengthened. Free condoms given out by the Ministry of Health and subsidised brands sold by social marketing companies are running out, The New Vision has learnt. The Govern
LAST week 600 youths who pledged to abstain from sex till marriage gathered in Kampala for a convention. This is a good development because it popularises one of the key pillars in fighting AIDS. It should not stop in Kampala. There must be protracted efforts to promote virginity countrywide. They should be supported t
PRIVATE individuals and organisations have been advised to complement government s efforts to provide education. Nakawa division MP, Fred Ruhindi said the education sector was a lucrative business that could be exploited to promote literacy. He said the government had created an enabling environment, and with the curre
WORLD Aids Day is officially marked on December 1. But local artistes celebrated it five days later at the National Theatre gardens. It was not an occasion for singing about HIV/AIDS. The artistes gave their best, each performing their very best songs to an enchanted audience. The green , as the theatre gardens are kno
First Lady Janet Museveni has attacked the press for downplaying an ongoing HIV/AIDS prevention campaign that emphasises sexual abstinence. Addressing 600 youths in Kampala, Janet protested an article in The Monitor that abstinence was a Western idea that will fail in Uganda . The convention was attended by 600 absta
THE Fellowship of Christian Unions (FOCUS) and the Uganda Christian Medical Fellowship (UCMF) will meet tomorrow to discuss HIV/AIDS, reports Charles Ariko. The meeting at the FOCUS Centre in Old Mulago will be attended by Church leaders, FOCUS associates, medical practitioners, university students and Christians.
Sexual abstinence among the youth and a campaign against rape and defilement should be promoted to fight against HIV/AIDS. First Lady Mrs. Janet Museveni asked Kitgum and Pader district leaders to sensitise people on the dangers of the practices. Mrs. Museveni said this at Akwang sub-county headquarters in Kitgum durin
THE Uganda Red Cross Society will build capacity for persons living with HIV/AIDS (PLWA) instead of giving them aid, the assistant programme officer, Prosper Byonanebyo, has said. He regretted that the terms of reference for agencies helping PLWA were too rigid. Byonanebyo said it was unfortunate that priority was give
THE African Community Health and Research Organisation (ARCHRO) has launched a sh1b project to support orphans and other vulnerable persons in internally displaced peoples’ camps in Acholi sub-region, reports Chris Ochowun. ARCHRO chief executive Norbert Obonyo said HIV/AIDS prevalence rate was high in camps in the nor
Kampala mayor John Ssebaana Kizito has hailed President Yoweri Museveni on his campaigns against HIV/AIDS. Ssebaana was laying a foundation stone for a primary school for orphans and vulnerable children at Kamwokya in Kampala on Saturday. The school will be constructed by the Kamwokya Christian Caring Community.
TIME check: 4:35pm. Esther Ochala is bathing her grandson, in a yard that has four huts and a semi permanent iron-roofed house. The flimsy structures are arranged in a semi circular pattern. Other than the family, in the yard there are ducks feasting on the remains of the day s meal. Ochala looks tired and exhausted. S
At first, they feared to venture into business. Then, they took long strides into the business arena. Despite the challenges, these Ugandan women have success stories to tell. Guests at the annual dinner for the Uganda Women Entrepreneurs Association (UWEAL), a body that brings together women in business, had a chance
AFTER 10 years, the National Strategy for the Advancement of Rural Women in Uganda (NSARWU) has began to bear fruit. We started as a small group of 22 in 1991 in response to governments policy to help people to form themselves into groups, said Florence Ekemu, the founder of the Kaberamaido Koboi Acheria and Amuria Wom
VIRGIN Catholic youth are to be registered, reports Chris Kiwawulo. Cardinal Emmanuel Wamala has directed school chaplains to register virgin students who have pledged to abstain from sex before marriage and encourage them to stick to the pledge. Wamala said this while closing a five-day Catholic students conference at
Five students are in jail, being suspects in a violent strike at Moroto High school which destroyed property worth millions of shillings. Moroto Grade Two Magistrate Jolly Onyang sent the students on remand on Friday after they denied the charges. Those sent on remand were Jackson Mayanza, Bruno Lokutai, Abraham Kotol,
All radio stations should allocate airtime for campaigns against HIV/AIDS, President Yoweri Museveni has ordered. He said he had directed the information minister to effect the order. Museveni said this while commissioning 90 ambulances for mini and non-profit hospitals for 36 districts on Saturday. He handed over the
PEOPLE living with HIV/AIDS in Jinja have received 1,000 doses of anti-retroviral drugs, Jinja Network of people with HIV chairman Francis Maganda has said. He said 600 doses were from The AIDS Support Organisation, 200 from the medical relief services and 200 from Jinja Hospital. Maganda was addressing guests at the d
THE Functional Adult Literacy (FAL) programme has contributed to the fight against AIDS, the national Fal trainer, Fred Lukabwe, has said. He said FAL graduands could interpret HIV/AIDS-related information, which helped them to fight stigma at the grassroots. Lukabwe said this while awarding certificates to 30 FAL grad
Ugandans should put more faith in abstinence and being faithful to their partners than in condom use, Kabarole resident district commissioner has said. Frederick Nyakabwa reports that Charles Ndiwa Chemasuet said condoms had various complications, and were therefore not the best option in the fight against hiv/AIDS.
THE AIDS Support Organisation (TASO) has received a sh872m boost in recognition for its anti-HIV campaigns. TASO was among six organisations worldwide acknowledged by the World of Hope, a US charitable organisation. It was the only indigenous organisation honoured in Africa. TASO executive director Dr. Alex Coutinho sa
PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni could not have been more than right in discouraging free distribution of condoms in primary and secondary schools. The president wants abstinence encouraged at this tender age and condoms only used as the last resort. Condoms are known not to offer 100% protection against HIV/AIDS and other se
Bugangaizi member of Parliament, Kibaale district Dr. Kasirivu Atwooki has started encouraging students and primary schools pupils to stay safe in school and say no to sex. Kasirivu was having seminars and classroom lessons with pupils in primary six and seven and secondary school students. He encouraged them to read t
BARCLAYS Bank staff collected sh4.2m and donated it to Hospice Uganda . Handing over the cheque to Hospice s chairperson Dr. Ekiria Kikule at their offices in Kampala recently, the bank s managing director, Nicky Mbuvi said, We support the fight against HIV/AIDS within the communities we operate. Mbuvi said they s
WOMEN should dress decently if the HIV/AIDS pandemic is to be wiped out, children in Soroti district have advised. in a speech read by 12-year-old Rita Apuno during celebrations to mark the world AIDS day at Soroti sports ground on Wednesday, the children said indecent dressing made women vulnerable to rape, thus expos
NILE Bank, Diamond Trust Bank and Western Union have donated $12,500 (sh24.8m) to Uganda Women s Effort to Save Orphans (UWESO) to facilitate purchase of essential items, reports James Odomel. Nile Bank s managing director, Richard Byarugaba, handed over the cheque to UWESO s chairperson, Marcella Mukasa, in Kampala on
The Islamic Medical Association of Uganda has received a sh88,573,400 donation from the Uganda Muslim Supreme Council (UMSC) to fight AIDS. The money is part of the $1.7m grant the UMSC secured from the United States Agency for Intern-ational Development through the Inter-religious Council of Uganda.
SEVENTEEN students of Moroto High school were arrested on Monday on suspicion of leading a strike and destroying property. The students, nine of them girls, were identified during an emergency meeting convened by the Resident District Commissioner (RDC), Lt. Robert Nambafu and deputy chief administrative officer Aloysi
Men should respect women when they say no to their sexual advances, Kabarole district speaker Nyakwera Baguma has said. He said this would help to fight HIV/Aids. Nyakwera said this during a memorial walk in remembrance of the people who died of HIV/AIDS on Tuesday. Nyakwera said women were more vulnerable to AIDS beca
IT IS OFFICIAL! East Africa s Coca-Cola popstars will for the first time perform at the same venue during two charity concerts organised by Coca-Cola and Sheraton Hotel Kampala. Uganda s BLU*3, Kenya s SEMA and Tanzania s WAKILISHA, are all a product of last year s Coca-Coca popstars talent search. The groups will make
Jitta Joshua Kigongo, a singer/guitarist with the Alps band is to launch his maiden album titled Kulabako at his residence in Mpererwe (Gayaza road) Sunday, December 5. Jitta s album launch concert will also double as his graduation party. The CD has six Luganda tracks played in reggae style. The song Muzuukuke (wake u
BRIDE price should be abolished because it is the major cause of domestic violence, Mifumi gender activists group have said. Presenting their input on the Domestic relations Bill before the legal committee on Tuesday, Mifumi welcomed a provision in the Bill, which makes marriage gifts an optional requirement for marria
THE battle against the HIV/AIDS pandemic will involve an annual census of youth abstaining from sex. The census is organised by the Office of the First Lady. Mrs. Museveni yesterday said the figures would be released at the end of every year. We have to enforce behaviour of people who can be bold enough to come out and
WORLD Aids Day yesterday was marked by further debate over the role of the condom. But the fight against HIV should not be derailed by vilifying the condom. There have been complaints over the distribution of condoms in secondary schools but there is no evidence that this has ever happed. It is an urban myth . Similar
Pastor George Okudi of the Wipolo fame has started a campaign against the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the internally displaced people s (IDPs) camps in northern and eastern Uganda . He made a thrilling performance at the launch of the Abstinence and Faithfulness strategy in the fight against the epidemic at Lira Coronation Pa
The Bakiga must stop promiscuity or risk being wiped out by HIV/AIDS. Rukiga MP Jack Sabiiti advised them to stop wife inheritance and advised them to drop the belief that a woman does not belong to one man in a family. He said HIV/AIDS is dangerous and advised the youths to abstain from sex and couples to be faithful
Ugandans should not use anti-retroviral drugs (ARVS) without professional prescription, President Yoweri Museveni has said. Museveni told an Aids Forum on Monday at the International Confe-rence Centre in Kampala that ARVs were toxic and had many side effects if not properly applied. He said, I appeal to experts on HIV
REHABILITATING northern Uganda , which has for the last 18 years been ravaged by the Lord s Resistance Army (LRA) rebellion will cost some sh882 trillion. There s a three-year plan for the emergency phase of the Northern Uganda Recovery and Development Programme in the offing. It s going to cost about sh882 trillion ov
ON World AIDS Day, we remember those suffering from HIV/AIDS, but it need not be a solemn occasion in Uganda . We can celebrate the tremendous strides being made in combating HIV/AIDS. We no longer have to count just those lost to AIDS. We can now enumerate those who are surviving, thanks to positive living and access
OCER 70,000 youth who took a pledge to abstain from sex until marriage will be hosted to a bash organised by the First Lady, Janet Museveni. The bash, slated for December 10, 2004, is one of the highlights of the World AIDS day. Mrs. Museveni s anti-AIDS campaign through the Uganda Youth Forum (UYF) has seen over 7
A TOP United States general and a senator are in Uganda to meet senior Uganda People s Defence Forces officers and examine the situation in northern Uganda. General Robert Foglesong, Commander of U.S. Air Forces in Europe, and Senator Sam Brownback will also participate in the World AIDS Day activities today, the US em
While Uganda has been cited as an AIDS success story, its protracted civil war threatens to unravel the country s dramatic improvements as AIDS rates skyrocket in the country s northern region, according to a recent report from Christian relief and development organization World Vision.
Alcohol and AIDS are good friends. Boozing is linked to risky sex. Once you have HIV, alcohol speeds up your death, said Martial Magirigi, the director of Serenity Centre, an NGO that treats people suffering from alcoholism and drug addiction. Magirigi said alcohol depresses the immune system. He said people under the
SEMINARS and workshops cannot win the battle against HIV/AIDS, Archbishop Emmanuel Cardinal Wamala has said. He said this recently during a mass at the closure of Sharing Youth Festival at Sharing Youth Centre, Nsambya. He discouraged the use of condoms and advised the youth to abstain from sex before marriage. I
There are over 150,000 people with in-depth knowledge of medicinal herbs and trees. This is according to Traditional Healers Together Against Aids (THETA). This select society are custodians of knowledge that could wipe away many diseases afflicting the population today. This includes cancer in all its forms, STDs,
THE distribution of condoms in primary and secondary schools promotes immorality, President Yoweri Museveni has said. I am not in favour of distribution of condoms in primary and even secondary schools. Leave them in shops so that the ones who are badly off can buy them. Let condoms be a last resort, he said. He was o
THE Police in Kumi district are hunting for lodge owners who have been employing female juveniles as sex workers. The resident district commissioner (RDC), Charles Mubiru, instructed the Police to investigate and arrest the perpetrators. The measure comes after the public complained to the RDC s office. My office has l
Women, girls and HIV/AIDS , is the theme of this year s World AIDS Campaign, which peaks this week. For socio-economic and biological reasons, girls and young women are more susceptible to HIV infection than boys and men. In sub-Saharan Africa, three fifths of adults living with HIV are women. Uganda
THE country will regret dropping the condom use campaign in favour of abstinence and faithfulness, MPs have said. Information state minister Dr. Nsaba Buturo on Thursday said the government had launched a drive to down-play condoms in favour of promoting abstinence and marital faithfulness. Nyombi Thembo (Kasanda south
GENDER activists have asked parliament to abolish polygamy and bride price under the Domestic Relations Bill 2003, writes Vision Reporter. In a memorandum to the parliamentary committee on legal affairs, the activists said polygamy violated women s rights. Solome Nakawesi said polygamy promoted domestic violence and in
Club hands over items to families in Nakibizzi near Jinja. There are about five orphans per home in the area, mainly from HIV/AIDS-related deaths. Most homes are run by children aged eight to 15.
TRANSFORMING rural people s lifestyle and putting them at the centre of the struggle against AIDS will reduce the pandemic, Vice-President Prof. Gilbert Bukenya has said. In a speech read by health minister Jim Muhwezi, Bukenya called for mass mobilisation against HIV/AIDS. This was at the annual Uganda
FIRST Lady Mrs. Janet Museveni has expressed shock at reports that some condoms are too small for African men. Such statements ridicule Africans and one wonders what kind of animals we are, she said. Mrs. Museveni was reacting to fears raised by participants at the closure of a two-day advocacy for women workshop that
A DRIVE to downplay condom use while promoting abstinence and marital faithfulness is to be started, state minister for information Dr. Nsaba Buturo said yesterday. We have erroneously given more prominence to condoms and this is going to change. It is now going to be equal treatment, he said Buturo said the electronic
Over 100 community-led HIV/Aids Initiatives (CHAI) sub-projects in Kabale district have received sh330m to fight HIV/AIDS. Kabale district chairman Adison Kakuru handed over 133 cheques to the groups at the Rukiiko hall in Makanga on Monday. The funds are geared at supporting people living with HIV/AIDS, widows and wid
THE United States Congress has formed a caucus on Uganda , the third such caucus to focus on African issues. The caucus will focus on improving relations and communication between the US and Uganda, combating terrorism and the struggle for peace in northern Uganda and the fight against HIV/AIDS. The idea of the cau
THE second annual TASO drama festival, which took place last Saturday, was a celebration of narrative, music, dance and drama. The occasion could have been one of the greatest things that has ever happened on stage ever since Ugandans started the fight against HIV/AIDS. Eight TASO drama groups from different regions of
Gulu Taso won the just concluded Taso annual festival competition. The festival took place at Pope Paul Memorial Community Centre recently. The group, which got 66 marks, walked away with sh1m. Taso Mbale came second with 60 marks followed by Jinja. Other centres that competed were TASO Mulago, Masaka, Mbarara, Tororo
THE Uganda Aids Commission (UAC) will soon start a multimedia campaign targeting the youth aged between 15 and 19 years. John Baptist Kanakulya, the UAC deputy director general, yesterday said the campaign would be conducted in various local languages for the benefit of the out-of-school youth. The campaign aims at
It is 100 times more infectious than HIV. Like HIV, it is incurable and spreads through blood contact and sexual intercourse. It is the hepatitis B virus(HBV). More than two million Ugandans are infected with the hepatitis B virus compared to the 1.5m people infected with HIV, the director Uganda National Expanded Prog
Christine Akumu, 33, was an adorable belle a couple of years ago. Today, emaciated she lies on her death bed. When Women s Vision visited her in Tororo town, the mother of three was seated all alone on the verandah, her daily routine since March. She narrates her experience with AIDS amidst tears. Before she became wea
LIVING without a family makes life a nightmare. It is even worse if you are a child. Millions of children around the world have been orphaned by the HIV/AIDS pandemic. In the aftermath of world war II, a German called, Hermann Gmeiner, had a dream of looking after needy children in a family environment. The effects of
FORMER Vice-President and Kigulu South MP Dr. Specioza Kazibwe has hailed the government policy of openness in the fight against Aids. Speaking at Bulamagi in Iganga on Friday, Kazibwe said the policy was paying off dividends, considering the amount of assistance Uganda receives from relief agencies and donors. She
The First Lady, Mrs. Janet Museveni, has appealed to religious denominations and leaders of faith-based organisations to take up a leading role in the fight against HIV/AIDS. She called upon them to promote abstinence among the youth and faithfulness in marriage. Mrs. Museveni was addressing a consultative meeting that
The president of the Uganda National Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Olive Kigongo, has advised members to exercise responsibility in the implementation of the Global fund for the HIV/AIDS programme. Let us not think about the programme from a selfish point of view, on how much each of us should get. We should not em
AN awareness campaign to restore the A (abstinence) and the B, (Being faithful) ahead of the C (Condoms) option in the AIDS prevention strategy is to be restored, reports Jude Etyang. First Lady Janet Museveni said the abstinence message was silenced by the massive publicity put on the use of condoms. She said her offi
Tough measures should be put against people who lure boys and girls into sex, Kasese district secretary for finance and administration Matayo Bwambale has said. He said most of the victims were infected with HIV/AIDS. He said this at the inauguration of the district HIV/AIDS committee at Hotel Margherita on Tuesday.
FOUR AFRICAN presidents, including Uganda s Yoweri Museveni, have appealed to the international community for help in the battle against AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. They have asked the Global Fund, which consists of both donor and beneficiary countries, to launch a new round of funding to help combat three of Afric
NAIROBI, Thursday – UN leaders attending a rare Security Council session won a pledge Thursday that Sudan ’s government and the main rebel group would reach a deal to end the two-decade long war. Council president John Danforth said Khartoum and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/ Army “have indicated that they wil
DDT has been recommended to fight against malaria. Addressing the 9th Global Fund fight against HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria meeting in Arusha, Tanzania , President Yoweri Museveni said there had not been any proved scientific evidence that the chemical posed a serious danger to health. He warned, If we spen
Chief administrative officers from West Nile have endorsed the National Strategic Framework (NSF) on AIDS action. This was at the end of a two-day workshop organised by the Uganda AIDS Commission at Arua catholic centre to rollout the NSF. The commission s monitoring and evaluation adviser, Dr. Jim Arinaitwe, said the
PUPILS of Itegyero primary school in Birere sub-county, Mbarara, have asked President Yoweri Museveni to ban min-skirts and other dresses that show women s nudity. When I see a woman exposing her nudity, I feel bad and regret why God created me, said Patience Atukwasa, 11, a Primary Five pupil. He said the youth have c
THE Adventist music and drama show, which took place at Lugogo Indoor Stadium recently, was characterised by high emotions. Unlike the usual Adventist concerts, the recent one had a non-musical programme titled Lwakinze (why me?). It is an adaptation of the daily evening programme on prime radio, in which letters writt
JOHANNESBURG, American economist Jeffrey Sachs has a novel way to tackle African poverty: shower more aid on the world s poorest continent. This may shock critics of African development who say aid has only made a bad situation worse. Some analysts say aid has created a continent-wide sense of dependency and that vast
TWENTY officials from five sports federations in Uganda are to train in Mbarara as HIV/AIDS peer educators under the National Council of Sports (NCS) HIV/AIDS sports project. NCS Nicholas Muramagi said, It is a government policy that requires all sectors to mainstream HIV/AIDS and we have mainstreamed it in our sports
ELDERLY persons in Mbarara district have demanded representation in Parliament and on district councils. Uganda reach the aged association (URAA) chairperson John Baptist Walusimbi said, We should embrace older people in our development plans and national policies. He requested the government to integrate issues of the
The HIV/AIDS pandemic has retarded business, the global fund she has become more than a benefacteor to thousands of children abducted, maimed, brutalised and traumatised by Joseph Kony s rebels. She is their mother, taking a centre place in the lives of the orphans. It is for this reason that Rotary Club of Kampala Cen
UGANDA National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (UNCCI) has started implementation of the Global Fund Project, which aims at fighting HIV/AIDS in developing countries. UNCCI s secretary general, John Twinomusinguzi, said recently that the first phase of the project would cover 31 districts and last for six months.
THE Reach out Mbuya HIV/AIDS initiative has received sh12m to help HIV/AIDS orphans to attain education. The money was given by the Uganda Bikers Association (UBA). UBA president Bernard Runnerbaum said this was a response to a call by the organisation to fund the education for the orphans. He said this during the
* If you were wondering why George Okudi didn t take part in this year s PAM and Kora awards, you have the answer. In his own words, the man of God found himself so busy in national and international performances and enjoying my title as best male artiste of the year. You may doubt the national bit but not the internat
THE Government has been urged to observe discipline with funds it receives from the Global Fund. The Fund s Executive Director, Prof. Richard Feachem, was addressing the press at the end of his visit to Uganda on Friday. The Global Fund committed US$201m to Uganda in a two-year programme and is scheduled to increase th
Kasese district chairman has directed parents and teachers to resume caning of children. He said too much freedom to the young was a major contributor to the spread of HIV/AIDS. I want the mass media to quote me on this. I am directing that parents in my district should not abide by this law that forbids the caning of
Bendicta Nakacwa, 68, a single elderly mother of Kalagala in Kalisizo, Rakai district has been one of the worst victims of the HIV/AIDS scourge. She has lost seven of her nine children to the disease that has left many homes devastated. The scourge has left thousands of hapless orphans in the hands of old guardians, ma
THE Lord s Resistance Army (LRA) rebel leader, Joseph Kony, is very conscious about HIV/AIDS and always isolates any women abductees suspected to be infected with the virus. Els De Temmerman, the author of Aboke Girls, said on Wednesday that whenever Kony suspected any woman in captivity to be HIV positive, she was iso
Despite heavy rains which have disrupted construction of the Pakwach- Karuma Road, the contractors believe the road will be completed on schedule. Fifteen kilometres of the road had been graded, but the rains washed away most of the soil, creating mini-galleys. China Chiongqing International Construction Corporation is
You lie down in a maternity ward, looking forward to returning home. But something is on your mind - that crippled baby you have just delivered. Why me? It is a sigh of regret. Will your husband understand? And to be honest, he too tells you the child does not belong to him! He beats you up, but the Police come in time
UGANDA is to get US$370m from the Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria, the executive director, Prof. Richard Feachem, has said. Feachem said the money was for the next three years and a small percentage of it had been disbursed. He hailed Uganda as one of the few countries in Africa, which had made a mark in the
SENEGALESE top musician and UNICEF goodwill ambassador Yossou N dour has commended the Government s efforts to fight HIV/AIDS. N dour arrived in Uganda yesterday, with a 23-strong band, at the invitation of mobile telephone company Celtel. He said Uganda s reputation in addressing HIV/AIDS was unquestionable. Ugan
AFRICAN Anglican bishops are committed to giving sermons relevant to the fight against poverty, HIV/AIDS and malaria. The Bishop of Lango diocese, Charles Odur Kami, said they also pledged to work harder for the eradication of corruption, conflicts and human rights abuses on the continent. He was over the weekend brief
Kyambogo University Friends Outreach Foundation (KUFOF) has donated household items to Nakibizzi Orphans Group in Njeru. The orphanage accommodates 167 children, who lost their parents to HIV/AIDS. The group of about 100 students, which was led by KUFOF chairman Isa Kiganda, delivered the items on Friday. they included
UNITED States Peace Corps (USA) and Nairobi Ultimate Frisbee Clubs have joined Kampala Ultimate Frisbee Club in the Out Reach Ultimate Frisbee tournament at Kyadondo club, Sunday. The one-day event is aimed at raising sh2m to help HIV/AIDS patients and orphans at Reach Out Mbuya Initiative. Event chairman Brandon Benne
THE Government is committed to supporting youth programmes in a bid to rehabilitate northern Uganda , state minister for northern Uganda rehabilitation Grace Akello has said. Akello said this at the launch of Gulu Youth Centre on Saturday. The centre is jointly run by the Straight Talk Foundation and the Family Plannin
Sixteen organisations in Rukungiri district will soon get sh700m from the HIV/AIDS Integrated Model district programme (AIM), reports Chris Ahimbisibwe. This was revealed by the AIM western regional manager, Dr. Esipilidon Tumukurate, at a two-day workshop at Rondevels Hotel in Rukungirir on Wednesday. The workshop was
BUSOGA Kingdom has received sh24m from the Uganda AIDS Commission under the Uganda Aids Control Project to boost an AIDS project code-named the Busoga Kingdom Aids Advocacy Project. The kingdom minister for social services and Jinja hospital medical superintendent, Dr. Benon Wanume, said this at a one-day workshop on H
THE youth drama team of the AIDS Information Centre (AIC) held a joint performance with M-Lisada Brass Band at New Highland Club, Nsambya recently. Leaders of M-Lisada band organised the show to create HIV/AIDS awareness among the band members and residents of Kevina in Nsambya. The performance followed a seminar condu
Uganda Aids Commission (UAC) has called for bidders for the construction of a new head office in Ntinda, an officer in the Uganda HIV/AIDS Control Project has said. The officer said recently that the new offices which will be funded by the World Bank, will be on Salim Bey Road, Ntinda. He said the work includes d
PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has received the Paul Harris Award, the highest Rotary award of the US State of Washington. The award is in recognition of Museveni’s humanitarian effort, especially in spearheading the fight against HIV/AIDS and eliminating polio through immunisation programmes. Museveni received the award at
Five Ugandan organisations have won a competitive awards process that qualifies them to receive part of a US$100m (sh17.3b) grant under the US President s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief. A statement from the US embassy in Kampala said yesterday the Ugandan organisations were Africare, AVSI, Christian AID, Plan Internat
Mobilisation for the national HIV/AIDS sero-behavioural survey has started in Kabarole district. A Vision Reporter writes that the exercise was preceded by a one-day sensitisation workshop for district leaders and stakeholders at SOKA Hotel in Fort Portal. The Ministry of Health, the implementing agency in the survey,
Dorcas Ndagire tested HIV positive 16 years ago. No one knows precisely when she got the virus, but it was definitely before 1988 when she took the HIV test. Now she does not worry about death. Having the virus does not mean you are going to die tomorrow, she says. Ndagire has survived all these years without anti-retr
Exclusive breast-feeding for the first six months is not practical for working mothers allowed only a 45-day maternity leave. The World Health Organisation and UNICEF recommend exclusive breast-feeding for the first six months, explains Robert Mwadime of Food and Nutrition Technical Assistance Project. Dr. Mwadime, als
The multi-million shilling Tororo Youth Centre, built with funds from the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), was on Wednesday handed over to the Family Planning Association of Uganda . The ceremony was performed by John Wavamuno of CIDA and Dr. Donal Kean, the country director of Plan International, who
PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has warned lecturers against striking over delayed salary increment, saying it would be counter-productive. Museveni, who was meeting lecturers from public universities at the Kampala International Conference Centre on Thursday evening, said to preach to him the need to raise pay for the dons
The Indian Association in Jinja will assist HIV/Aids orphans who are unable to meet dues for secondary education. The association chairman, Singh Malkit, said the recipients of the bursary scheme would be given the opportunity to complete O level. These children are helpless after calamity claimed their parents. We fel
Eighteen top musicians from across Africa have collaborated on a song. The artistes, who include Salif Keita ( Mali ), Angelique Kidjo (benin), Ismael Lo ( Senegal ) and Koffi Olomide (Democratic Republic of Congo, hope that it will park action against poverty and HIV/AIDS on the continent. They also intend to involve
THE US is to disburse US$107m in 2005 to fight HIV/AIDS in 15 countries, including Uganda . The USAID national HIV/AIDS advisor, Amy Cunningham, said the funds would be used to prevent infection and treat HIV/AIDS patients. She said this at the annual general meeting of the Uganda Network of AIDS Service Organisa-tion
The Government is investigating claims that the Engabu brand of condoms was unsafe, the Minister of Health, Brig. Jim Muhwezi, has said. In the meantime, the Engabu condoms in the Government stores have been withheld and those earlier released to districts have been replaced, Muhwezi said on Monday. Muhwezi, who was op
Set 340 miles apart, the story of boys and girls schools bound by dedication to the parents of Jesus Christ have interesting accounts of their background and fate fused into a sad tale of terror, rape and death in October. St Joseph s College Ombaci in Arua district and St Mary s Aboke Girls school in Lira district are
THE Masaka district HIV/AIDS committee has refused to recommend the district farmers association to access money from the global AIDS fund. The committee chairman, Yusuf Ssenteza, said they refused to sign the memorandum of understanding for Masaka district farmers association because of internal leadership conflicts.
Bishop Zabedee Masereka, retired prelate of the Diocese of South Rwenzori, takes a practical approach to prayer and care for both the spirit and body. It is through this that he guides and prepares his flock for heaven. He is concerned about the wholistic welfare of a person. Popularly referred to as Omusyakulhu wethu
KAMPALA - A woman identified as Babirye recently amazed a congregation in her church with her testimony on how God had healed her breasts miraculously, writes Nicephore Agwanyi. Omwami wange kati asobola okumpeweta amabere. (Now my husband can freely fondle my breasts), she explained. She told the pastor before the con
GULU district chairman Walter Ochora has urged NGOs to buy anti-retroviral drugs instead of spending on sensitisation workshops. I studied the work plan of NGOs like Unicef, the World Vision and Danida, which allocated millions of shillings to sensitisation workshops, which are not benefiting the AIDS clients. They sho
State minister for primary education Namirembe Bitamazire has challenged headteachers of primary schools to effect the Presidential Initiative on AIDS Strategy for Communication to the Youth (PIASCY) in their schools, reports Moses Nampala. Bitamazire made the remarks on Saturday during a PIASCY music gala at Buckley h
NANZIGA SDA Primary School choir launched its album titled Children of Africa with a captivating show at Hotel Africana on Sunday, October 17. Several solo artistes and musical groups that included Glorious Singers, Buddo SSS choir, Gloria Nambi and Daniel Wasswa performed at the concert. The enchanting kids of Nanziga
IN 1977, Allen Neumbe was born a normal beautiful baby with big nice eyes. Every time she saw her mother, a smile flashed across her face. She loved playing with her sisters and looking at pictures. She was the envy of visitors at home, but all this was brought to an end when at 2 years of age, she suffered from measle
President Yoweri Museveni yesterday opened the US$4.5m teaching complex at Mulago Hospital, with a call for more partners to combat the disease. The Infectious Diseases Institute (IDI), Africa s only anti-AIDS teaching hospital, is to train the continent s doctors in the management and treatment of people with HIV/AIDS
Uganda is listed for trials of the new AIDS drug, Chemokine Receptor (CCR5). The drug guards against the spread of the virus. Dr. Ann Kolokathis, an infectious diseases specialist from the Pfizer Global Pharmaceuticals (PGP), on Tuesday said trials would begin in November. The CCR5 inhibits the virus from enteri
The Christian Children s Fund (CCF) has given sh1.4b to four districts in eastern Uganda for the fight against HIV/Aids. The funds, provided through Australian Partnerships with African Communities Programme (APAC), will cater for over 50,000 youth in the region for five years. The CCF country director, James Ameda
Mulago hill is alive with activity as scientists and public health workers prepare to launch the new multi-million-dollar Infectious Diseases Institute (IDI) tomorrow. The new building houses a state-of-the-art laboratory certified to do trials that are acceptable to international regulatory authorities, Keith McAdam,
The Seventh Ministerial Session of the African Regional Conference on Women ended recently, adopting a lengthy statement with a series of recommendations designed to help overcome the daunting challenges still facing African women. The conference was held in Addis Ababa. The statement, which was adopted after four days
STATE minister for defence Ruth Nankabirwa has expressed concern over increasing cases of child rights abuse. It s devastating that in most conflicts worldwide, children are part of the military agenda as they are not granted the protection of special rights that are provided for in international legislation. The situa
Namirembe Bitamazire, the minister for Primary Education, has advised women to fight for their rights if they want to have successful families. Bitamazire was recently discussing a topic: Women and HIV/AIDS in Kiboga District. She said most marriages were failing because women did not respect their husbands. She asked
PASTOR Martin Ssempa of Makerere community church has cautioned university freshers against indulging in sexual acts that could cause them to contract the HIV/Aids scourge. Ssempa was on Thursday handing over 15,000 Bibles to first year students at Livingstone Hall, Makerere University. Several students turned up to ge
Thousands of people from the five districts of West Nile on Wednesday flocked to Arua town to welcome President Yoweri Museveni. Museveni had gone to close a three-day youth dialogue on HIV/AIDS. Processions, led by a pressure group called West Nile Effort for Museveni, started as early as 6:00am. The pressure group wa
SOME PEOPLE now claim that ABC stands just for Abstinence, whereas it is government policy that ABC stands for Abstain, Be faithful and Condoms. Let us not forget that the hugely successful AIDS prevention message from 1986 onwards was called Love Carefully and emphasised zero-grazing . Abstinence was not originally pa
The family of the late legendary Ugandan musician Philly Bongoley Lutaaya has dedicated the recent PAM Awards Lifetime Achievement Award to all the people in Uganda involved in the fight against HIV/AIDS. The family expressed gratitude to the Pearl of Africa Music Awards organisation for recognising Lutaaya s rich musi
PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has said crusaders against the AIDS scourge must shout and not whisper about its menacing ways. Museveni said Uganda had registered reasonable successes in its fight because he shouted loud for Ugandans to guard against the pandemic other than encouraging amorous condomisation. Museveni
PATIENTS with HIV infection and a history of alcohol or drug abuse are more likely to confuse their HIV sero-status than HIV-positive patients with no alcohol history, the national coordinator for Counselling and Testing (VCT), Dr. Zainab Akol has said. Akol said taking alcohol with other drugs that have depressant eff
THE Government has extended the fight of HIV/AIDS to major road construction projects by setting up clinics in areas where the road network has improved, state minister for transport Andruale Awuzu said on Wednesday. Awuzu said the move, spearheaded by the works ministry and the Road Agency Formation Unit (RAFU), was a
KAMPALA, Friday - The Ugandan government is reviewing its policy on HIV-voluntary counselling and testing (VCT) for children following recommendations by experts that disclosure of a child s sero-status should only be done by a person with whom the child feels most comfortable. Currently, a Ugandan below the age of 18
PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has again warned Ugandans against the use of condoms, saying they are not risk-free. Museveni said although the country had registered success in reducing the HIV/Aids prevalence from 30% to 6%, Ugandans should not become complacent. Condoms are not the solution because there are certain sickn
President Yoweri Museveni has won an award for his commitment to the health of children. The Commitment to Children Award from Elizabeth Glaser Paediatric AIDS Foundation (EGPAF), recognised Museveni s efforts to stop the spread of HIV/Aids and providing hope to children affected by the pandemic. Museveni will receive
HIMA Cement has launched an HIV post-testing club in Kasese district. The club is a voluntary social support group for clients who have tested for HIV, irrespective of their status. During the launch, the Hima managing director, Mbuvi Ngunze, said the club had increased health-consciousness within the community. W
UNICEF country representative Martin Mogwanja has lauded the Government for fighting the HIV/AIDS pandemic. He called for revision of the stipulated age of consent for HIV testing so that children below 18 years can also test. Mogwanja was speaking at a workshop for voluntary counselling and testing (VCT) at Ridar Hote
Ugandan patients who were at the risk of acquiring diseases through unsafe injections should brace themselves for a solution to their problems, reports Fred Ouma. Dr. Alex Kamugisha, the state minister for primary health care, launched a five-year Injection Safety and Medical Waste Management Project (ISMWMP) worth US$
Beauty products are a threat to our health and environment. But life without them would be horrible. Cosmetics are made from poisonous chemicals. One of the poisons in cosmetics is parabenzene. According to John Wasswa of Makerere University, parabenzene is prevents fungal and bacterial growths on moisturisers once the
Only few people look a massage as a complementary medicine. A massage involves using the hands to perform various movements on the skin. These movements cause relaxation and healing. The main techniques of the massage include rubbing, kneading, stroking and pressing on the body. The hand movements facilitate the circul
Tuberculosis (TB), a very old disease found in the Egyptian mummies 3,000 years ago, continues to threaten our lives to date. TB germs infect 32% of the world s people. In the developing world, including Uganda , 70% of the population is infected. It registers eight million new cases a year and three million deaths.
KAMWENGE woman MP Aidah Mehangye has called for the increased promotion of condom use among youths in the Rwenzori region. Knowing what the Allied Democratic Forces war did to this region, we should not discourage the use of condoms. Youths need to protect themselves with these little things (condoms) until ARVs can ev
THE stakeholders in the management of HIV/AIDS in Mbale have formed an umbrella association to provide services to HIV patients. The Mbale Region Antiretroviral Liaison Team (MRALIT) comprises organisations such as TASO, Joint Clinical Research Centre, Mbale Regional Referral Hospital, AIDS Information Centre,
THE director of the Integrated Development and AIDS Concern (IDAAC), Rev. Jackson Muteeba, has warned AIDS support organisations against misappropriating funds under the programmes. Muteeba was last week handing over ox-ploughs, spring pumps, poultry and bicycles to 13 AIDS support organisations in Busiki county, Igang
They are the most common medical concern in the genital area for women. Many times, they are treated at home. This may fail , because of lack of knowledge. Three major infections occur. Candida is the most widely known, Bacterial Vaginosis is the most frequent and only one of the three is sexually transmitted: Trichomo
THE Nigerian Ambassador, Chikudi Dixon Orike, has hailed Uganda for successfully reducing the HIV pandemic in the country. Orike was on Friday speaking at his residence in Nakasero, during celebrations to mark the 44th anniversary of Nigeria s independence. Ten years ago, Uganda was at the centre of the AIDS epidemic.
THE president s wife, Janet Museveni, has advised parents to lead exemplary lives and nurture their children to overcome the threat poised by the HIV/AIDS in society, writes a Vision Reporter. Museveni said this at a one-day sensitisation seminar that was organised by the National Strategy for the Advancement of Rural
President Yoweri Museveni (left) yesterday travelled to Harare, Zimbabwe , on a state visit at the invitation of President Robert Mugabe, writes Vision Reporter. Museveni was expected to discuss a range of issues from trade to AIDS, according to French news agency, the AFP. AFP quoted Zimbabwe s The Standard newspaper
THE Government has signed a $70.3m (about sh122b) agreement with the Global Fund for HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFTAM). The grant was signed on Friday by Mary Muduuli, the deputy secretary to the treasury, on behalf of the Government and Patrick Balidawa of PriceWaterhouse Coopers on behalf of the local agent.
The AIDS Information Centre (AIC) Arua branch manager, James Okweny, has said Pakwach town council has the highest prevalence of HIV/AIDS in Nebbi district. The data on HIV/AIDS in Nebbi and the West Nile region was released during the district voluntary counselling and testing (VCT) data feedback meeting recently.
WORLD VISION Uganda (WVU) has injected sh7b in northern Uganda for food, HIV/AIDS support, upgrading of roads and building of schools in Gulu, Kitgum and Pader districts. WVU national director Robby Muhumuza recently, after the launch of the book Pawns of politics: children, conflict and peace in northern Uganda at the
POWER FM has launched a campaign of preaching abstinence till marriage among secondary school students. Launching the campaign at Eagles Nest Secondary School in Kampala recently, Power FM s audience relations manager, Beverley Nambozo said the campaign is aimed at finding out reasons why young people do not want to ab
AIDS patients receiving anti-retroviral drugs (ARVs) have increased from 15,000 to 25,000 in the last few months. This is due to a fall in the cost of the drugs, health minister Brig. Jim Muhwezi said yesterday. The cost of the drugs has dropped from sh55,000 to sh29,000 for a month s treatment. More people can afford
THE Government, with support from the African Development Bank, has given sh1.4b to renovate three health centres in Soroti district. Apapai Health Centre IV, Gweri Health Centre III and Ateta Health Centre III will benefit. Opening the centres recently, the minister of health, Brig. Jim Muhwezi said the Government aim
THE World Food Programme (WFP) is feeding 18,650 people living with HIV/AIDS in Uganda , The Aids Support Organisation (TASO) chief, Dr. Alex Coutinho, said on Saturday. Speaking during TASO s annual general meeting at Kitante Primary School in Kampala, Coutinho said 3,730 were TASO clients. He said the one-year pr
THERE IS an increasing emphasis in some quarters on abstinence rather than condoms as the best defence against HIV/AIDS. However government should not divert from its official ABC policy that lays equal emphasis on Abstinence, Be faithful, and Condoms. Abstinence is indeed the ultimate protection and adolescents should
The United Nations Children s Fund (UNICEF) has decried the rampant early marriages in Nebbi district. UNICEF realises with concern that the age of marriage in the district, especially in Erussi sub-county and Paidha town council, is very young. Girls are getting married at 14 and 15 years, the UNICEF country represent
THE Japanese government has donated US$2m to reconstruct northern Uganda districts. Japanese ambassador Nobuaki Ito announced the aid at the Uganda-Japan Cultural Festival at the Ashinaga Uganda Rainbow House in Nansana, Wakiso district. Ashinaga deals with counselling of HIV/Aids orphans, helping them come to terms wi
THE director of the Joint Clinical Research Centre (JCRC), Peter Mugyenyi, has said the monthly dose of the commonest Anti-retroviral (ARV) drug costs sh29,000 with effect from this week, reports Denis Ocwich. It has reduced by 35% from sh45,000. This is good news for poor Ugandans. By selling one cow or 12 goats at sh
Kalangala district HIV/AIDS focal person Dr. Henry Katamba has said authorities are alarmed by the number of fishmongers demanding for free anti-retroviral drugs (ARVs) without testing for HIV/AIDS. Addressing a seminar for district leaders at Ssese Guest House on Tuesday, Katamba said residents believe that accessing
Nobody who hears them can easily forget their inspirational spiritual lyrics, coupled with their sensuous stage antics which always attracts revellers to join them. They are called Soul Winners , a family group of 10 talented orphans, who spread the gospel through music and dance. They are intent on becoming stars.
THE First Lady, Mrs. Janet Museveni, on Monday held a meeting with the British High Commissioner, Adam Wood. During the meeting in Mrs. Museveni s Kololo office, Wood lauded the success that had been achieved in the Universal Primary Education (UPE) programme, especially for girls. He said the programme laid a strong f
The president of the Uganda National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (UNCCI), Olive Kigongo (right), has asked Government for more support. In an interview at UNCCI offices in Kampala recently, Kigongo said, We thank the Government for what it has done so far but more is needed because we lack qualified personnel.
PEOPLE living with HIV/AIDS (PLWA) from Kyenjojo and Bundibugyo districts have asked the Government to avail Anti-retrovirals (ARVs) at Health Centre IVs in their districts. Currently, treatment is only at the Fort Portal regional referral hospital and we are tired of moving long distances. Health is our fundamental ri
THE retired bishop of South Rwenzori Diocese, Zebedde Masereka, has told the Government to act realistically on HIV/AIDS by making promises it can fulfil. Masereka said the Government had continually set unachievable goals in the fight against HIV/AIDS, the most recent being the target to roll out anti-retroviral (ARVs
THE national HIV/AIDS prevalence statistics are wrong and misleading to the public, Maj. Ruranga Rubaramira, a leading AIDS activist, has said. Rubaramira, the executive director of the National Guidance and Empowerment Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS (NGEN+), said the actual disease prevalence was about 17% as
The archbishop of the Church of Uganda , Henry Luke Orombi, has said the immorality that has been prevalent on the streets has entered the Church. He called upon priests to show their faith in God by resisting temptations that could lead them into wicked acts. Orombi was on Friday speaking at a retreat for students of
THE donor community has asked the Government to start laying concrete plans for the rehabilitation of northern Uganda now that the Lord s Resistance Army war is ending. Irish Ambassador Martin O Fainin, who is the head of the donor group on northern Uganda, said they were happy with the progress against the rebels, but
PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni yesterday advised fresh graduates to join the Uganda People s Defence Forces (UPDF) and the Police Force, saying they offered instant employment opportunities. The President also said there was no unemployment in Uganda, only that most people studied courses which were not marketable and there
Peninah Abuo married early and produced 16 children. She is a housewife in Bululu, Kabermaido district. She did not go to school. Neither did her husband, a fisherman. None of her children went beyond primary school. They either provide farm labour or do petty business. Mrs. Hope Mwesigye is a lawyer, Member of Parliam
The World Health Organisation country director, Dr. Oladapo Walker, has promised to ensure that all Ugandans living with HIV/AIDS access anti-retroviral drugs (ARVs). Addressing a WHO-funded workshop for health workers in Kampala recently, he urged researchers to develop a new drug to fight HIV, if it resisted the exis
THE Inspector General of Police, Maj. Gen. Katumba Wamala, has warned people handling HIV/AIDS funds and drugs against diverting them for personal gain. Some of the good structures coming up in suburbs are a direct result of diversion of these resources, Katumba said. This was in a speech read by the Police in-charge o
Last Saturday, Abidi Christian Businge, 12 (above) of St. Bernadette Primary School in Hoima was crowned winner of an International HIV/AIDS video contest by Scenarios from Africa project. In a function organised by the project coordinator in Uganda , Dr. Stewart Kearsley, at Duhaga Secondary School, Businge was also g
THIRTY-ONE districts will benefit from the first phase of the sh208m fund which the Uganda National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (UNCCI) received from the Global Fund to fight HIV/AIDS. In an interview recently, Stephen Kabagambe, the programme s coordinator, said the beneficiary districts will be in central, easte
UGANDANS living with HIV/AIDS have appealed to president Yoweri Museveni to recognise their work and give them incentives to motivate them. They also appealed to the Government to enhance advocacy for people living with the virus. Our president has been given awards and he has been greatly praised but us who are on the
MOROTO - State minister for Karamoja peter Lokeris recently launched free HIV/AIDS voluntary counselling and testing services in the district, the first of its kind in the region.
MBALE - State minister for communication Michael Werikhe has asked people living with HIV/AIDS not to lose hope but continue contributing to the development of the country. He cautioned people against believing that being HIV positive was a curse. He was officiating at the TASO annual general meeting over the weekend.
KITGUM - The Community-based HIV/AIDS Initiative (CHAI) project and the Uganda Aids Commission are catering for the education of 317 orphans in primary school. CHAI official Thomas Ojok told journalists recently that the project was paying school fees, buying uniforms and other scholastic materials for the orphans, who
THE life expectancy of Ugandans has shot up by five years from 42 to 47 years. The shift is attributed mainly to the decline in the HIV prevalence from 18.5% in 1991 to 6.2% today. The statistics were contained in the state of Uganda Population report 2004, which was launched simultaneously with the state of the world
SOUTH African computer giants will showcase some of the leading IT solutions at this year s Africa Information and Technology Exhibition and Conferences (AITEC) which started yesterday at the Internation Conference Centre, Kampala. OriginEx, a South African technology company will exhibit its latest computer solutions
RUKUNGIRI - The district health educator, also the Aids Integrated Model focal person, Francis Ndazarwe, has said HIV/AIDS voluntary counselling and testing (VCT) will soon be in all health centre IIIs. Ndazarwe said this on Saturday while opening a one-day workshop on HIV/AIDS for LC3 women councillors at Rukungiri S.
mbarara - The Community hospital has installed CD4 count machine worth sh67m, for monitoring AIDS progression. Inaugurating this equipment at the hospital on Saturday, Mbarara CAO, Hezzy Kafureka said the CD4 count machine, the first of its kind in western Uganda , would greatly improve the care of people living with H
kampala - Over 12 million Ugandans are demanding HIV tests, the national Coordinator for Counselling and Testing (VCT), Dr. Zainab Akol, has said. Akol said that basing on the 2002 population census, people aged above 15 years far exceeded the country s current 100,000 HIV test kits. Briefing a delegation led by Shephe
Health kits donated lukaya - The Canadian government has donated medical equipment worth sh35m to Kalungi Health centre in the town council. Among the equipment donated were those that test HIV/AIDS, various diseases and antenatal conditions. The Canadian High Commissioner to Kenya , Yves Perrer, handed the package
OF all Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs), the less known to Ugandans is genital warts. And yet globally, it is becoming one of the most common STIs. Also known as condylomata acuminata or venereal warts, the contagious disease caused by the human papilloma virus ( HPV ), can appear anywher
Residents of Pallisa district seeking medical services at Pallisa Town Council Centre Lodoi Development Fund (LDF) is one of the few organisations striving to improve the livelihood of the people of Pallisa district. Started in 1999 by Dr. Patrick Mutono and Helen Mutono, LDF focuses on the environment, agriculture, mi
THE deputy Speaker of Parliament, Rebecca Kadaga, has called for the promotion of girl child education, saying it would empower women economically and make them resist adultery. Kadaga said low social responsibility among parents and lack of economic empowerment for women had increased HIV/AIDS prevalence. She was on S
To many people in Uganda , the title professor is often associated with grey hair, thick-rimmed spectacles and a somber-wrinkled forehead. But Dr. James Kiwanuka- Tondo, a civil servant-cum-journalist, turned academician, does not fit into that description. In fact, because of his body size, age and suave appearance, o
First lady Janet Museveni has expressed gratitude towards the increasing number of personalities and organisations devoted to fighting HIV/AIDS in the country. The commitment exhibited by Ugandans in the fight against HIV/AIDS is a manifestation that the country will get rid of the disease, she said. Mrs. Museveni said
Fellow Citizens, 1.0 As the country is aware, Government has published the road map to take us to 2006. Cabinet will soon present to Parliament a White Paper and a comprehensive Bill regarding the thinking of the Movement administration about desirable changes in our 1995 Constitution. 1.1 As part of the process of con
What would you do if you were teacher and your student enticed you into love? What is the situation of students that join schools that practise lesbianism or homosexuality? How should vulnerable students be protected from sexual harassment at school? These are some of the questions that are posed, answered by Sweet Ene
Children from safer regions in Uganda , under the New Partnership for Children Against Violent Conflict in Northern Uganda (NEPCAVIC) have donated relief items worth sh17m to orphans in Barlonyo. The children, comprising pupils from 52 primary and secondary schools in Kampala, Wakiso and Mukono districts, donated the i
SOROTI RDC Musa Ecweru has advised youth from Teso, Karamoja and Acholi regions to intermarry in order to forge peace. He said they should test for HIV before they marry. Ecweru was opening a workshop organised by the Jamii ya Kupatanisha (Fellowship for Reconciliation). The fellowship met at Central Secondary School.
THE Mayor of Mukono Town Council, Johnson Muyanja Senyonga, has said the increasing crime rate in the country is a sign that most people go to church to show off. Officiating at the opening of a four-day Biblical youth workshop at St. James Church in Nasuti village on Saturday, Senyonga said he doubted whether believer
Uganda s first test-tube baby is expected mid next month. Dr. Edward Tamale Ssali, the director of the Nordica Kampala Fertility and Gynaecological Centre, said he had fertilised eggs in a dish and implanted the embryos into several women. At least two are now in advanced pregnancy. One of them has gone to deliver in B
TESO children have asked the Government to start programmes to enable orphans affected by HIV/AIDS attain higher education. Participating at a Children s Day organised by Teso Rural Development Organisation (TERUDO) at Ogooma sub-county in Kumi district on Thursday, the children lamented that most orphans who had been
THE executive director of The AIDS Support Organ-isation (TASO), Dr. Alex Coutinho, has said 600 people living with HIV/AIDS will get anti-retroviral (ARVs) drugs this year. The country has a provision of drugs to benefit only 2,000 people but we will begin with 600 in the first two years and in the third year, the 800
Gone are the days when the thinking and money minting was solely left to husbands. Today, women are rapidly demonstrating that innovations aren t anything but creativity. Stunning innovations characterised the recent International Women s Day celebration in Kamuli district. A women organisation, Kamuli District Women s
President Yoweri Museveni on Saturday afternoon addressed hundreds of enthusiastic delegates attending the 16th annual Uganda North America Association convention at the Sheraton Hotel in downtown Seattle. A relaxed Museveni, accompanied by his wife Janet, government ministers, ambassador Edith Ssempala and US Congress
A NUMBER of african leaders last week used the second African Traditional Medicine Day to confirm their commitment to national efforts aimed at ensuring the safety, efficacy and quality of traditional medicines. In a statement, the African Union (AU) Commission called on member states to ensure that research on traditi
THE South Rwenzori Church of Uganda bishop, Jackson Nzerebende, has warned his flock of a financial blackout due to declining donor funding to the church. The diocese has been majorly depending on donor funds for most of her development projects and very little from the Christians here (in Kasese) and now that donor fu
President Museveni addressed a very enthusiatic crowd at the UNAA Seattle convention this afternoon. In the packed luncheon address, Museveni challenged Ugandans in North America to * Get education and know how to develop Uganda * promote manufactured products such as processed coffee abroad * promote and encourage tou
The presidential advisor on HIV/Aids, Kintu Musoke, has said high-ranking government officials living with HIV/AIDS are too scared to go for free anti-retroviral (ARVs) drugs because they fear public reaction. He said those who did not know their status feared to go for blood tests because of public opinion. I am now f
KAMPALA - A master of ceremonies shocked jubilant balokole (born again Christians), when he announced that the wedding they were waiting for had been cancelled due to the HIV status of one party, writes Nicephore Agwanyi. The wedding, which was scheduled to take place in Wandegeya, was between Joseph and his bride iden
Abinet Girmaye, the president of the Ethiopian Central Health College is planning to construct a $5m medical training college in Uganda . We are talking to various government departments about constructing a $5m medical training school, Girmaye said while meeting Uganda Investment Authority officials at their offices o
A PRO-condom Catholic AIDS agency in Australia has protested the invitation of Emmanuel Cardinal Wamala to Sydney because of his opposition to the use of condoms. Wamala is expected to travel to Sydney for the Catholic Mission Week this month. Brian Haill, the president of the Australian AIDS Fund Incorporated, in stat
Youth of Kampala s Christ the King Church have resolved to use music, dance and drama to fight HIV/AIDS spread. They are to launch their crusade, Christ the King anti-AIDS Facts with a rib-breaking music/drama festival entitled the Sweet enemy at Christ the King Parish Hall this Sunday, starting 3:00pm. State Minister
THE AIDS Integrated Model (AIM) district programme recently trained 3,477 people in Bushenyi district on HIV/AIDS, reports Wilber Muhwezi. Bushenyi district AIM focal person Nobert Turyahikayo said 900 tea workers and their spouses were trained on condom use. Turyahikayo said 620 prisons staff and prisoners at Nyamushe
Cases of herbalists sexually molesting their female clients are on the rise in Jinja district. The district Police commander, Pius Mutabazi, has said scores of women have been raped in the shrines of the male herbalists. These women claim to have been raped when they sought the services of the herbalists, he said.
Nile Bank s managing director, Richard Byarugaba, will this weekend lead a charity walk in Mbarara to raise funds for Hospice Uganda . Hospice Uganda is a non-governmental organisation which looks after cancer and HIV/AIDS patients. As an advantaged person and bank, we feel the need to help these people because it is a
UNICEF representative Peter Kabagambe has decried the increasing cases of defilement of school children. He blamed local leaders for concealing information about abuse of children, saying this had increased defilement and the prevalence of HIV/AIDS in children. Kabagambe made the remarks at celebrations to mark Bugiri
A European Union (EU) delegation has commended Uganda s efforts in fighting HIV/Aids and promised to solicit more funding for the cause. The 12-member delegation was yesterday visiting Naguru Teenage Information and health Centre. We have known over the years that Uganda is a specific case as far as HIV/AIDS is concern
THE King of the Batwa, Geoffrey Nzito, 22, has resumed school after having dropped out in P.4. The four-feet tall Nzito, who aspires to pursue a degree in human medicine, dropped out of Bumate Primary School during the Allied Democratic Front (ADF) rebel insurgency. Sources from Bundibugyo said Nzito has engaged a priv
An international social marketing organisation, Population Services International, has launched a Voluntary Counselling and Testing (VCT) awareness campaign in Nebbi district, reports Frank Mugabi. Speaking during the launch at Nebbi Hospital recently, district administration secretary Yotam Agenrwoth who represented d
THE three-day Global Fund peer-coaches workshop on HIV/AIDS at Jokas Hotel in Bweyogerere ended with a call to the 20 participants not to sit back and relax, reports Norman Katende. We are lucky that Uganda is one of the beneficiaries of this Global Fund. Let what you have learnt apply. Let us pass over what we have le
THE assistant commissioner in charge of health promotion and education, Paul Kaggwa, has warned Ugandans against linking HIV/AIDS campaigns to politics, since it is a global problem. He said the Government condemned politicising HIV/AIDS, saying the country was making another stride against the disease through the Nati
A Commissioner for secondary education, Khalid Nsubuga, has called for the use of music, dance and drama to mobilise the community against HIV/AIDS, reports John Nzinjah. Nsubuga said this recently at Kasese Secondary School during the district s music, dance and drama secondary schools competition. Nsubuga also offici
KAMWENGE district has received a sh109m grant from the Global Fund to fight HIV/AIDS in the district. The fund to be managed by Kamwenge Developm-ent Agency (KADA) will sensitise people on the dangers of HIV/AIDS. Special presidential assistant on research and information Frank Tumwebaze recently commissioned the campa
UGANDA buys 19 million condoms every month to combat HIV/AIDS, STDs and improve family planning, the national programme officer for information and communication in the population secretariat has said. Martin Ninsiima said this on Friday during a three-day media professionals workshop attended by about 30 journalists f
THE UN Children s Fund (UNICEF) and scientists have warned against use of anti-retroviral drugs (ARVs) without improving the nutrition of patients. The scientists said there was a lot of talk of ARVs but the nutrition issue is not addressed. Delegates from 14 eastern and southern African countries are meeting in Entebb
HALF of the children rescued from the LRA rebels in northern Uganda are HIV-positive, the Minister of Gender, Labour and Social Development, Zoe Bakoko Bakoru, has said. Bakoru was yesterday addressing a breakfast meeting organised by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) for the visiting European Union delegation
New Vision - New Vision (Kampala) - August 30, 2004
Mariam Nalunkuuma
MAJOR Ruranga Rubaramira has advised people living with HIV/AIDs to have medical discipline while taking Anti-Retroviral (ARVs) drugs. With the introduction and distribution of free ARVs, people living with HIV/AIDS should always follow the medical prescriptions, he said. He added that, when you have drug discipline, w
THE director of St. Mary s Hospital Lacor in Gulu, Dr. Cyprian Opira, has said 200 malnourished children are being treated at the hospital. He said the malnutrition unit at Lacor has admitted 200 severely malnourished children yet it has only 40 beds. Opira said this in his office recently during a meeting with a consu
Busia resident district commissioner George Patrick Bageya has appealed to the youth to respect elders. Bageya was officiating at the district Youth Day celebrations at Bukwekwe Primary School on Friday. The theme was The role of the youth: Break the cycle of poverty. Bageya urged the youth to engage in productive acti
MULAGO Hospital had not received any significant form of rehabilitation for over 80 years. At the same time, many structures had been built to serve different purposes without necessarily taking into account the contiguity of functions. This made the hospital spread out, making it difficult for physical integration.
PERSONALITIES attending a peer-coaches HIV/AIDS workshop at Jokas Hotel, Bweyogere, were yesterday called upon to pioneer behavioural change among sportsmen, since this is the only way that the nation can get rid of the deadly disease. There is no way you can say that you are fighting AIDS without teaching the masses t
STATE minister for agriculture Dr. Kibirige Ssebunya (right) has urged Ugandans to dedicate more time in executing agricultural activities other than sex. Ssebunya said this at the launch of an HIV/AIDS resource book for extension workers at Hotel Africana, Kampala. We have preached abstinence, faithfulness and use of
TWELVE students from Birmingham University recently donated laboratory and sports equipment and textbooks worth over sh3.6 to 11 secondary schools in Masaka and Luweero districts. The students, who came to Uganda through the Straight Talk Foundation, were in the country for five weeks visiting schools in the two distri
ABOUT 77.1% of the females in Nebbi district are more likely to engage in commercial sex, a socio-demographic study has revealed. Programme for Enhancing Adolescents Reproductive Life (PEARL) deputy manager Nathan Wabwire said this at a district leaders sensitisation workshop in Nebbi on Monday. He said the mode of pay
THE Batwa (pygmy) king in Bundibugyo, Geoffrey Nzito, has condemned the increasing defilement of Batwa girls, reports John Thawite. Nzito said neighbouring communities defile and rape his subjects, putting them at risk of AIDS. He said many Batwa children in the area did not know their fathers because their mothers wer
ABOUT 20 participants yesterday started an HIV/ AIDS peer coaches -training workshop at Jokas Hotel, Bweyogerere, with a call for them to leave by example and help save the masses, reports Norman Katende. The workshop is under the sh100m Global Fund to help sensitize the sports community of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Parti
On Monday, August 16, Njeri, the wife of renowned writer Ngugi Wa Thiong o narrated the painful ordeal of how she was raped by robbers. The couple was staying in what was supposed to be a secure apartment. Many times when we hear of rape cases, it is easy to blame the victim. The fact is no one ever plans to be raped a
Three PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) international officials are in Uganda as part of the firm s corporate social responsibility to assist in anti-AIDS programmes, a statement from the company has said. Australian Sophie Cockayne, Swede Jorgen Haglund and Irishman Andrew O Callaghan will be working for The Alliance of Ma
THE US Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Centre for Disease Control have donated nine vehicles and 19 motorcycles to the AIDs Information Centre (AIC). The cars, worth sh500m, are for Lira, Soroti, Kabale and AIC headquarters. Receiving the vehicles on Friday at AIC headquarters in Mengo, executive d
PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has ordered a probe into reports that 300 people in Gulu were conned by Major Kakooza Mutale s Kalangala Action Plan (KAP) under the guise of a revolving fund. This is unacceptable. This is criminal. This is a very serious offence. Katumba (Inspector General of Police) must investigate this Ka
NDEJJE University Vice-Chancellor, the Rev. Dr. Michael Senyimba, has said the Government should start counselling and guidance as teaching subjects in war ravaged areas. We don t only have victims of Kony atrocities, but also victims of rape, pagan sacrificial orgies, parental child abuse and HIV/AIDS. Victims of all
It seems there is no stopping Biro, who is set to premiere at The Market Theatre in Johannesburg, S. Africa in September. The play will then take for a tour to Capetown and Durban, where in conjunction with the play, Ntare will conduct a series of theatre-based HIV/AIDS advocacy workshops. Biro is a multi-media solo pe
THE United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has launched an HIV/AIDS resource kit for schools. Mr. Augustine Omare, the secretary general of the national commission for UNESCO said during the launch at City Parents school last week that more effort was needed to complement young people
The Uganda National Association of the Deaf (UNAD) has concluded a one-week training in basic sign language skills for over 35 deaf people in Karamoja, with a call to them to demand for their rights. Addressing participants at St Phillips Community centre Moroto on Wednesday, UNADS information officer Joseph Mbulamwana
STATE minister for Karamoja development Peter Lokeris recently launched free HIV/AIDS voluntary counselling and testing services in Moroto district, the first of its kind in Karamoja region. Joseph Orisa reports that the function took place at Moroto Boma ground. Lokeris urged the Karimojong to go for testing. He said
KASANA Youth Alive, a club of Christian youth affiliated to Kasana-Luweero diocese, has released a video of its anti-HIV/AIDS drama. The visionary, nerve-cracking Luganda play, Nkungudde Maziga (I have reaped tears), sensitises people about the dangers of HIV/AIDS. It showcases an undergraduate student, whose parents s
NATIONAL Council of Sports (NCS) has started a drive that will help create awareness through sportsmen and sports lovers, and also protect them from the terror of HIV/AIDS. Under the support of the Global Fund, NCS will train peer coaches, who will help carry out HIV/AIDS awareness campaigns. We have already received s
FINANCE state minister Mwesigwa Rukutana yesterday said the Government is to cut down the use of donor aid by at least 25% on developmental projects. Appearing yesterday before the parliamentary budget committee, Rukutana said there has recently been an increase in the inflow of global and donor funds especially on HIV
Rukungiri resident district commissioner Charles Byabakama has urged the youth to avoid rushing into early marriages, saying it has caused many social problems in the country. Byabakama said this recently at celebrations to mark the International Youth Day at Buhunga sub-county. He said over 50% of the youth in the cou
THE German Development Services (GTZ) has provided HIV/AIDS tool kits and sh5m to people living with HIV/AIDS in the Madi community in northern Uganda . The director of the Madi AIDS Control Initiative, Jean William Edro, said about 110,000 people in Adjumani and Moyo were living with HIV/AIDS. About two to three
THE Alliance of Mayors and Municipal Leaders Initiative for community action on Aids at the local level has received sh78m from the Aids global fund to support 200 HIV-orphaned children, the national coordinator has said. Dr. John Mugisa said the money would be shared among 10 selected urban centres in the form of micr
PERSONS living with HIV/AIDS have queried the distribution of the Community HIV/AIDS Initiative (CHAI) funds, saying they were benefiting those who are not HIV positive. This was at the candlelight day at Rakai district headquarters on Saturday, to remember those who died of AIDS. They complained before the director ge
A RECENT study has revealed that 40% of deaths in prisons are due to Tuberculosis. The study was carried out in January by the Uganda Prisons Service in conjunction with Mulago Medical School. Silver Ssewanyana, a senior consultant with Winsor Consult Ltd, told a workshop on the human rights situation in prisons that t
IMAGINE you are a 52-year-old widow. Five of your offspring die of AIDS in three consecutive years and their children are left in your charge. But you are just a poor peasant with only two acres of land and a dilapidated mud and wattle house. This is precisely the plight of Nnalongo Damulira, a native of Nabalanga vill
The Ministry of Health yesterday launched the long-awaited national HIV/AIDS sero prevalence survey. The survey will also cover the prevalence of syphilis, herpes simplex 2 and hepatitis B . State minister for health Dr. Alex Kamugisha launched the exercise by flagging
THE German government has granted sh8b for the marketing of condoms, behavioural change and treatment of sexual infections. German ambassador Alexander Muhlen and Secretary to the Treasury Chris Kassami signed the grant agreement on Friday at the Ministry of Finance headquarters. The funds, channelled through the Germa
BIRDS OF A FEATHER: Namubiru and Julien of Nujeli have established themselves as formidable musicians in France There is a lot that we do not know about singer Irene Namubiru beyond the fact that she constituted a half of the defunct Afro-soul group I-Jay way back in 2000. But there have been a lot of developments both
SOME 1,100 HIV/AIDS patients have received free anti-retroviral (ARV) drugs from MSF France through Arua Hospital AIDS Programme (AHAP). The hospital medical superintendent, Dr. Charles Olaro, said this during the celebrations to mark two years of free ARV treatment in Arua recently. Between July 2002 and July 200
Nakasongola resident district commissioner Francis Batinti has asked the youth to abstain from sex, saying it is the best way of avoiding the AIDS scourge. You should learn to abstain from sex. It is the only sure way of securing your lives, he said. Batinti was on Friday addressing Nakasongola district youth leaders a
Lilian Mworeko represents views and feelings of women living with HIV. She has seen a number of her acquaintances suffer silently because they cannot afford anti-retroviral drugs (ARVs). Women are the most affected but when it comes to access to care they are the most disadvantaged, she says. Mworeko says the majority
Zambia s minister of health, Brian Chituwo, recently boasted that 6,000 out of a targeted 10,000 people living with AIDS, have accessed the government s cheap anti-retroviral (ARV) drugs since a roll-out began last August. What he does not mention is that even though women make up the majority of people living with AID
Non-government organisations have asked the government to curb the increasing teenage prostitution in the fishing villages in Masaka district. Masaka district Community HIV/Aids Initiative (CHAI) coordinator Wilson Bihwera said many young girls had been lured out of primary schools to serve in bars and restaurants at L
THE Judiciary has welcomed a proposal by Parliament to enact a law against malicious spread of HIV/AIDS. Parliament last week instituted a parliamentary committee on AIDS to be chaired by Dr. Elioda Tumwesigye following a recent survey by the Uganda AIDS Commission and the World Bank. The survey indicated that some
STATE minister for Primary Education, Namirembe Bitamazire has advised parents to talk to their children about sex, sexuality, and other life skill practices. This, she said, would help reduce the spread of HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases. Bitamazire said the state of health of Uganda s youth require m
Uganda students, who attended the Model United Nations General Assembly (MUNGA) in UK have said sex education should not be restricted to schools but be extended to places of worship as a way to combat HIV/AIDS. Talking about their experiences at the British Council offices at Rwenzori Courts recently, the students a
AIDS patients, more than anyone else, are at a higher risk of developing kidney failure, two senior kidney specialists have revealed. Dr. Ajij K. Hulgol, a chief transplant surgeon and Dr. S. Sundar, director and senior consultant nephrologist from Karnataka Nephrology and Transplant Institute in Bangalore,
Pediatricians have warned that many lives may be lost unnecessarily unless urgent efforts are made to address treatment for children. Dr. Philippa Musoke, who teaches paediatric medicine at the Makerere University Medical School, said about 150,000 children are infected with HIV. One third of them - about 50,000 - need
RETIRED Masaka Diocese Bishop Adrian Kivumbi Dungu has criticised the Government for giving out condoms to the public, saying this was spreading HIV/Aids. He said giving out condoms meant the Goverment encouraged people to indulge in sex. Dungu was on Saturday leading a mass at Kalwanga in Kaliisizo during celebration
CARDINAL Emmanuel Wamala has warned youths against premarital sex, saying abstinence is the safest way to avoid HIV/AIDS. He said this on Monday at the Jinja Kaloli parish day celebrations in Kawempe, a Kampala suburb, where he also wedded nine couples. Wamala advised parents to have a hand in their children s marriage
THE Special Envoy to the UN Secretary General on HIV/AIDS in Africa, Stephen Lewis, has said Uganda needs more aid to alleviate the effects of the pandemic. Uganda has over two million orphans. More support is needed to sustain them, Lewis said. This was during a meeting of HIV/AIDS community-based organisations at Maa
PARLIAMENT has instituted a committee to establish a law on the malicious spread of AIDS. They must be punished, the chairperson of the parliamentary committee on AIDS, Dr. Elioda Tumwesigye, told a national HIV/AIDS symposium organised by Parliament in Kampala on Friday. This follows a survey by the
STATE minister for primary health care Dr Alex Kamugisha has decried the high HIV/AIDS prevalence in Kasese district. Kamugisha was addressing residents at Rwens-ande Health Centre IV in Kyabarungira sub-county, where he commissioned a sh120m surgical theatre. He said the HIV prevalence of 15% in Kasese was too high co
ALL health centres at the counties (Heath Centre 4s) will be able to distribute Anti-Retroviral (ARVs) drugs by the end of 2005, the Director General of Health Services, Prof. Francis Omaswa, has said. The money to buy drugs is there but the challenge is to operationalise it, he said. He was addressing the Parliamenta
The UN Secretary General s envoy for AIDS in Africa on Saturday said the population in northern Uganda was besieged by two enemies - an 18-year-long rebel conflict and the AIDS pandemic. The people in northern Uganda are wrestling with the conflict on one hand and HIV/AIDS on the other. Northern Uganda is truly under s
Six countries including Uganda , have signed an agreement to establish the Great Lakes Initiative on AIDS (GLIA). Uganda, Rwanda , Kenya , Tanzania , DR Congo and Burundi concluded the pact in Bujumbura on Monday.
A Development organisation, Agency for Accelerated Rural Development (AFARD), has launched a two-year AIDS initiative to bring behavioral change and increased awareness among the population of Dei landing site on the shores of Lake Albert in Nebbi district. The initiative, codenamed Lakeshore AIDS Initiative Project, w
THE UN Secretary General s Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa, Stephen Lewis, has said there should be distribution of free anti-retroviral (ARV) drugs to all the victims in Africa, especially to the displaced in northern Uganda . While on a visit to Pagak IDP camp recently, Lewis spoke to some of the 240 people liv
WHEN Isaiah lost his father in 1989, his life became a nightmare. If he thought his repertoire of misfortunes was over, he was sadly mistaken. 11 years later, his mother perished. Unable to fend for himself, he dropped out of school due to lack of fees. In 2000, the boy resumed studies, after Elvis Bassude, a relative
A GLOBAL Fund donation of US$13m (sh23b) to fight HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis has been frozen until procurement plans by the Government are approved at the fund s headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland . During a meeting with the special UN envoy on AIDS in Africa, Stephen Lewis on Monday, Health minister Brig.
UN special envoy on Aids in Africa Stephen Lewis has said condoms remain central to the Aids fight. Lewis said recent UN studies show that abstinence is not possible among the vulnerable groups especially young women forced into marriage. Recent studies indicate prejudice against young women who are forced into marria
THE UK Prime Minister, Tony Blair, has committed £6.2m (sh19.8b) to Uganda to fight HIV/AIDS through the HIV Umbrella Programme. A statement from the British High Commission yesterday said the Umbrella Programme involved support for the co-ordination of the national response, civil society support and addressing HIV t
The long-awaited national HIV Sero-Behavioural Survey by the Ministry of Health starts in three weeks time, Dr Alex Opio, the survey director has said. He said that that everything was ready. We make a passionate appeal to the district authorities and the public for support to make the survey successful, Opio told the
THE Principal Private Secretary Office of the President, Tekila Kinalwa, has said RDCs should participate in advocacy and monitoring the distribution of free Antiretroviral. This was contained in speech read by the under secretary office of the President, Juma Kakande, at a one-day workshop on HIV/AIDS for RDCs and the
THE UN Special Envoy for AIDS in Africa, Stephen Lewis, visits Uganda from July 25-31, to appraise Uganda s anti-AIDS progress. Of the 37.8 million people living with the scourge worldwide, more than 20 million are in Africa. Lewis, Canada s ambassador to the United Nations (1984-1988) was appointed by the UN Secretary
MOROTO LC5 chairman Terence Sodium Achia has advised Karimojong men not to trust condoms, but be faithful to their wives as the best way to avoid HIV/ AIDS. Achia was on Monday speaking at the National Book Week Festival at Moroto Boma Grounds. Achia said condoms were not 100% safe and were tricky to use while having s
Brother Anatoli Wasswa of Banakalori Catholic Brothers Kiteredde in Rakai district has backed President Yoweri Museveni on the promotion of the sexual abstinence as the best solution to fight HIV/AIDS. Speaking to residents of Bisanje in Masaka district recently, Wasswa said condoms use was unreliable. He said people w
UGANDA s HIV/AIDS estimates have been revised downwards. An estimated 4.1% of Ugandan adults aged between 15 and 49 are living with HIV. This is contained in a report released by UNAIDS at the recently ended 15th International AIDS Conference. The number of adults and children living with HIV is now estimated at 530,00
THE Uganda Muslim Supreme Council (UMSC), through the established UMSC HIV/AIDS project, recently received sh100m to combat the AIDS scourge in Kampala, Iganga and Kamuli districts. The money was donated by the US Agency for International Development (USAID) through the Inter Religious Council. The funds will be u
UGANDAN, Kenyan and other delegates at the Africa-Asia interaction on AIDS discussions in Bangkok, Thailand have called for increased involvement of traditional healers to fight HIV/AIDS. The delegates were participating at the XV Inter-national AIDS conference. Dr. Cheikh Mbache, the Rockefeller Foundation vice-presid
THE Uganda National Association for the Deaf (UNADS) has appealed to government to consider it in the Universal Primary Education (UPE) and HIV/AIDS programmes. The association said it had been sidelined in all government programmes. UNADS programme officer in charge of information and funding, Joseph Mbulamwana, said
No scientist has thought yet that polygamy can be a tool against Aids. In fact, an argument of this sort would go on and on. But in a world that so desperately needs a solution to the Aids scourge, anything can be possible. In the eyes of a Muslim woman who knows it better, it is possible to reduce the spread of HIV in
HOPE prevailed at the International AIDS Conference in Bangkok as it became clear that an increasing number of AIDS patients would have the opportunity to live longer, and the number would grow even bigger in future. Drug prices have come down, treatment has become simpler and more governments are willing to invest mon
HEALTH state minister Dr. Alex Kamugisha has said President Yoweri Museveni did not campaign against the use of condoms at the Aids conference in Bangkok, Thailand . Kamugisha told a press conference yesterday that Uganda was still using the ABC (abstinence, be faithful, condom) strategy. Kamugisha, who was flank
THE director general of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, (UNESCO), Koichiro Matsuura, has asked Uganda not to be complacent about its achievements in the fight against HIV/AIDS. It is a fact that Uganda has made significant progress in combating AIDS. But you should not relax becaus
FOLLOWING President Yoweri Museveni s July 12 speech at the Bangkok, Thailand , international HIV/AIDS meet, a lot of unguided missiles of criticism have been fired at him. Needless to say, the shots are far off target. The purported reason for lynching the President is because he spoke his mind. Candid as ever, the Ug
Gulu district has urged NGOs and CBOs involved in HIV/AIDS activities to restructure their operations to avoid duplication of services. The district HIV/AIDS focal person, Okot Lokach, said this at an HIV/AIDS stakeholders meeting at Sunset Hotel in Gulu town on Friday. Lokach said the move would also help in identifyi
The 45-year-old Stella Bogere learnt two years ago that she was HIV positive, after the death of her husband. Her friends deserted her. Without relatives to rely on, her health began deteriorating. She plunged into a state of helplessness and despair. Due to poor health, she stopped selling charcoal, her only livelihoo
The state minister for information in the President s Office, Dr. Nsaba Buturo, has urged people to support the Movement government, saying God has installed it and opposing it meant disobeying Him, reports Ebenezer Bifubyeka. You should not forget that God has saved us from the political life of the 1980s, he said.
UGANDAN HIV/AIDS activists have slammed President Yoweri Museveni for his statement downplaying condoms in the anti-Aids campaign at the 15th International Aids conference in Bangkok, Thailand . On Monday, Museveni addressed the conference, which is running under the theme Access for All . The activists, who said they
THE Vice-President, Prof. Gilbert Bukenya, will head a delegation comprising government officials and the private sector to attend the Smart Partnership international dialogue scheduled for July 29 to 31 in Langwaki, Malaysia . Sylvia Juuko reports that poverty reduction, HIV/AIDS and investment opportunities are some
PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni s remark on condoms has drawn divergent reactions from delegates at the 15th International AIDS Conference in Bangkok, Thailand . Museveni on Monday said condoms should not be the main focus of the fight against AIDS, saying the protective rubber was just an improvisation, not a solution.
UGANDA HAS suffered embarrassment of great proportion when a stall put up at an international AIDS conference was still empty two days into the event. President Museveni is reported to have been driven away from the booth when, after delivering a keynote address to the world AIDS conference in Bangkok,
Not long ago, a mother got the shock of her life when her daughters (names withheld), aged 13 and 17 dragged her to the LCs, accusing her of pushing them into commercial sex work. The two girls were reportedly annoyed that every time they sold sex, their mother took away the proceeds. One of the girls also complained t
Sarah (rents a room in Busia with friends): I do sex work not because I really like it. My parents died and left me with two siblings to look after. They too died later. I think it s good they died because I was worried about feeding them. Because of the worries, I started smoking heroine. My friend told me to enjoy li
MPS on Sunday took over the Uganda exhibition stall following the Uganda Aids Commission failure to put up a display on the country s fight against HIV/AIDS. Exhibitions on the fight against AIDS are being held at the Aids Conference in Bangkok from July 11 to 16. MPs Babiiha Alisemera (Bundibugyo) and Jessica Eriyo (A
PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni yesterday stunned delegates at the international AIDS conference in Bangkok, Thailand , when he said condoms were not the answer to AIDS. Museveni said Uganda had achieved a big reduction in HIV infection rates mainly due to abstinence among youths, faithfulness among adults and to a small ext
WOMEN are increasingly at great risk of HIV infection. The United Nations 2004 Report on the global AIDS Epidemic indicates so. In what it calls the rising female face of the epidemic, the report released on Tuesday says fighting the feminisation of the epidemic is one of the leading challenges that countries and organ
THE Government is to put in place a mechanism to screen for HIV/AIDS on migrant workers who intend to go abroad. State minister for health Mike Mukula said this would regulate the out-flow of Uganda s labour market in terms of quality. He was speaking at the opening of a four-day migration and recruitment awareness con
THE LETHAL spread of the HIV/Aids pandemic across the globe is speeding up, in spite of intensifying efforts on the part of UN agencies, the US, Britain and other European governments to turn the tide. Five million people were infected by the virus last year and nearly three million died. The UN s latest bi-annual repo
Africa Alive Uganda , a regional anti-HIV/AIDS organisation has developed a website that contains positive adolescent reproductive health messages on behavioural change. When you visit all the Internet cafes, you find people surfing pornographic material. we are also using the same media to develop a website that will
The chairperson of the Parliamentary committee on HIV/AIDS, Elioda Tumwesigye says Germany is to donate over 300 HIV-testing kits to the Parliamentary Resource centre to be established soon after approval. The centre will have a library Internet, counselling services where MPs will access information and counseling ser
A STREAM of harmonious voices and an avalanche of rumbling drumbeats come tumbling down from the untamed remote mountain tracks of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest to where I have just boarded off a tourist van. The tiny sharp voices, chorusing Kinyakole folk songs, and the venerated drumbeats, soar high into the forested mo
THE senior presidential adviser on HIV/AIDS, Kintu Musoke, has urged very important persons (VIPs) to declare their HIV status if the country is to avert the pandemic. I must warn this nation about the coming crisis. The country will lose ministers and MPs. These important people do not want to be identified among the
THE Ministry of Health on Wednesday warned people living with HIV/AIDS against self-medication. It is important for one to be assessed and guided by a trained health worker whether he/she should use Anti-retroviral (ARV) drugs, Dr. Sam Zaramba, the acting Director General of Health Services, said in a statement. I
The deputy Chief Justice, Laeticia Kikonyogo, has asked legislators to come up with laws on HIV/AIDS at the work place. The way forward is for relevant authorities to enact specific HIV/AIDS legislation, such that an HIV/AIDS policy is developed in all organisations, she said. Kikonyogo was on July 5 opening a workshop
THE United States citizens residing in Uganda on Friday evening met to celebrate over 228 years of independence. The US Ambassador to Uganda, Jimmy Kolker, and wife Britt-Marie, hosted their citizens at their home in Kololo. It was an invite-only affair. By 6:00pm, guests had started trickling in. These included local
MUKONO Town Council has passed a sh971m budget for 2004-05. Im happy to announce that the council will spend sh971m in the next financial year, Richard Mubiru, the council s finance secretary said while reading the budget at the council boardroom recently. Mubiru said sh120m would be used for HIV/AIDS awareness and sen
THE HIV/AIDS infection rate in displaced person s camps has doubled from the country s average of about six to 12 percent. The state minister for disaster preparedness, Christine Amongin Aporu, yesterday officiated at a ceremony to receive an assortment of drugs from the Indian High Commissioner to Uga
Tororo district chairman Nuwa Owora has said people who have sex without using condoms should be charged with murder. I will not get tired of warning people that AIDS is a problem that everybody should guard against. But there are people living with the disease who want to spread it. Tororo is taking a special step to
BY the end of this year, every district will have a centre for prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission, the programme coordinator, Dr Saul Onyango, has said. At these centres, pregnant women will be given HIV counselling and testing, and those who are HIV positive will receive drugs that prevent them from passin
WAKISO district has passed out 43 nursing assistants to administer the free anti-retroviral drugs and treatment. The graduands were passed out by state minister for primary health care Dr. Alex Kamugisha during the district Aids Day recently. In a speech read by the permanent secretary, Mohammed Kezaala, Kamugisha advi
The AIDS Support Organisation (TASO) has launched the construction of five HIV regional centres under the United States Presidential Initiative. TASO executive director Dr. Alex Coutinho said on Friday the centres would be constructed under a US$1.5m funding from the President George Bush initiative for HIV/AIDS progra
Religious leaders have formed an NGO to fight the HIV/AIDS scourge in Uganda . We commit ourselves to championing hope in the midst of despair. This is a commitment from men and women who have got first hand experience and can change the face of AIDS in the society, said retired Kasese Bishop Rt. Rev. Zebedee Masereka,
A RECENT survey by the directorate of health services in Iganga has revealed that there are no virgins above 16 years of age in the district. The acting district health inspector, Francis Kyakulaga, said the research involved 3,000 male and female respondents in the sub-counties of Waibuga, Bulamagi and Iganga town cou
DONORS have accepted to increase funding for the second phase of the Health Sector Strategic Plan (HSSP II) for the next five years. Lise Jorgensen of the Royal Danish Embassy said development partners (donors) would increase funding a little bit more from the current 45% of the health budget. The first phase of the pr
THE Nabagereka of Buganda, Lady Sylvia Nagginda, has expressed concern over the delay in supplying anti retroviral drugs (ARVs) to people living with HIV/AIDS, writes Christopher Kiwawulo. Nagginda said this on Tuesday while visiting people living with HIV at The Aids Support Organisation (TASO) headquarters, Mulago.
THE Japanese Trust Fund (JTF) in conjunction with the Family Planning Association of Uganda (FPAU) has trained 50 peer educators to sensitise the community about HIV/AIDS in Iganga district. The in-charge of the FPAU Iganga branch, Susan Taaka, said the JTF-funded project will run for one year. She said the peer ed
Mbale and Sironko districts have issued a by-law in which all bakhebi (local imbalu surgeons) will be registered and issued with photograph-bearing certificates before being allowed to carry out male circumcision rituals. Bungokho North county health inspector Emmanuel Muyobo said the measure was part of the strategy t
PRESIDENT YOWERI Museveni has warned against taking anti-retroviral drugs without consulting a doctor. The President s word of caution should be taken seriously. The Ministry of Health has just launched an initiative aimed at making sure that every AIDS patient who needs anti-retroviral drugs will receive them. This in
PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has warned people living with HIV/AIDS against using Anti-retro viral (ARVs) drugs unless directed by a doctor. The Government has now got enough ARVs to treat all HIV/AIDS victims in the country but I warn you not to opt for it just because you are positive. The drug has its own side effects.
THE UGANDA Muslim Supreme Council (UMSC) officials have appealed to Parliament to expedite the tabling of the Khadi Courts Bill, saying it could solve the contentious issues in the Domestic Relations Bill (DRB). UMSC chief Edirisa Kasenene told the parliamentary committee on pornography that despite attempts by the Mus
OVER two million children in Uganda are orphaned, abandoned and treated very badly. For example, because of HIV/AIDS many children have lost their parents and some children have been separated from their families because of war. On July 1, many people and organisations, who care about children, will meet at the Interna
THE US Government has announced an additional $51m for Uganda under President Bush s $15b emergency plan for Aids relief. The money is part of the additional $300m that U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator Randall L. Tobias announced would be released to fight HIV/AIDS in 15 countries, a statement issued by the American embass
KAMPALA City Council (KCC) is to set up laboratories in Police and army barracks for officers to access HIV/AIDS counselling and testing services. The aim is to combat the epidemic in the forces. The centres will be set up using funds from the Global Fund to fight HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. The distric
A total of 120 health workers have undergone training in Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission of HIV/AIDS (PMTCT) and use of anti-retroviral (ARVs), drugs writes a Vision Reporter. American President George Bush initiated the $15b Global Fund to fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria in Africa. The health workers a
STANDARD Chartered Bank will commemorate AIDS Day today. The move aims at creating more awareness and support for people living with HIV/AIDS. The bank s chief executive officer, David Cutting, said the initiative would be carried out across Standard Chartered s global network. We have decided that World AIDS day is no
Tororo district is to pass a by-law to punish unmarried couples who engage in live sex. The district chairman, Nuwa Owora, said the law would help in fighting the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Those found guilty will be liable to at least two years imprisonment. There will be no alternative of a fine, he said. He urged women forc
Pupils from 14 primary schools in Entebbe Municipality, Wakiso district have decried domestic violence and called upon the Government to address the problem. The children from Nsamizi, Nkumba, Nkumba Qur an, St Joseph, Kiwafu Muslim, Uganda Airport and Nakyogo primary schools, among others, said that domestic violence
A rural community-based medical facility in Buwenge Hospital, Jinja district, has been opened to fight HIV/AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis and other diseases in mid-eastern Uganda . The hospital, worth about sh1b was recently inaugurated by former Austrian internal affairs minister Erwin Lanc. The hospital, to cover Ji
AT least 512 orphans will attain education after Bishop Zebedee Masereka Foundation assured them of school fees from primary to university level. About 70% of them are orphans of parents who died of HIV/AIDS and the remaining 30% is equally shared by children from needy homes and those whose parents died in the Rutoro
HE woke up to go and preach at the Reformed Baptist Church in Mbale on a Sunday in 2003, armed with what he thought was a powerful message. The sermon as presented on the church programme was to preach on the ability of the power of the Word. To him, there was no better opportunity to share his HIV sero status to a con
SERVICE providers at the Voluntary Surgical Contraception (VSC) unit, Mulago hospital have expressed disappointment at men’s poor response to vasectomy. Vasectomy is a permanent family planning method for men. Elias Balinda, a service provider said that vasectomy accounted for less than 5% of all the family planning me
THE chairperson of the parliamentary committee on HIV/AIDS has urged Ugandans to go for voluntary HIV testing in order to access free AIDS drugs if they are found HIV-positive. If you test yourselves, you will get free drugs from the government, said Dr. Elioda Tumwesigye. He was last weekend launching the prevention o
THE Ministry of Health is to carry out a national HIV sero behavioral survey to establish levels of transmission of the disease through voluntary testing and counseling. The plan was disclosed by the programme manager of the STD/Aids Control Programme at the Ministry of Health, Dr. Elizabeth Madraa, recently. She was c
IN recognition of their successful fight against the HIV/AIDS scourge, President Yoweri Museveni and his wife, Janet, have been given the Hero Award 2004 by the United States Medical Institute for Sexual Health (MISH), reports Alfred Wasike. The First Lady received the award last week at the institute s 2004 national m
PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has vowed to eliminate defilement from Ugandan society. In a statement read by the state minister for youth and child affairs, Felix Okot Ogong, during the Day of the African Child celebrations in Ntungamo district, Museveni said the Government planned to strengthen the laws to guarantee more
MAKERERE UNIVERSITY S new Vice-Chancellor has called for more professors to strengthen research. It is good that Prof Livingstone Luboobi has identified this as a priority early in his tenure at the head of our biggest institution of higher learning. Makerere has, over the last 30 years, tilted more towards teaching, a
THE visiting president of Christian Children s Fund (CCF), John Schultz, has announced a sh40b funding for war-torn northern areas and HIV/AIDS programmes in the country. Schultz, who is on a three-day visit to Uganda , told reporters at Grand Imperial Hotel on his arrival that CCF had decided to increase their funding
KIBOGA district director of health services Dr. John Bosco Serebe has said people who intentionally infect others with HIV should face 50 years in prison. Giving a public lecture on HIV/AIDS at Kiboga hospital on Tuesday, Serebe said some people maliciously infected others with the virus. He said those caught intention
VICE-PRESIDENT Prof. Gilbert Bukenya has called on the international community to mobilise more resources for developing countries to implement national responses to AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis . Addressing medical professionals and government representatives at a Global Fund for HIV/AIDS conference in Sussex, UK, B
MORE than sh152b will be spent on purchasing anti-retroviral (ARV) drugs over the next five years. Health minister Brig. Jim Muhwezi said this would result in all people suffering from AIDS being able to get free drugs. The Global Fund to fight HIV/AIDS, Malaria and Tuberculosis is providing up to US$78m and the World
People who have been suffering from AIDS but could not afford anti-retroviral medication can now approach health centres for help. On Friday, the Minister of Health, Brig. Jim Muhwezi, launched a programme in which all AIDS patients in Uganda will, in due course, be given free drugs, beginning with some 2,700 this year
WORLD Vision country director Robby Muhumuza has decried the lack of professional counsellors. Our country has very few counsellors yet there are so many people in need of professional help. We need people who will assure our friends about a good future even when faced with life-threatening situations, he said. Muhu
FREE AIDS drugs have arrived. The Ministry of Health yesterday began distributing anti-retroviral drugs to district and regional referral hospitals. Health minister Brig. Jim Muhwezi was due to launch the programme at Mulago Hospital. The Government has stocked drugs for 2,700 patients initially, with first priority to
THE Ministry of Health today begins distributing the anti-retroviral drugs to district hospitals. Health Minister Jim Muhwezi is launching the programme at Mulago Hospital this afternoon. Government will cater for 2,700 patients initially but plans to increase the number to 60,000-70,000 in two years.
THE former US ambassador, Martin Brenan, has advised the Government to establish a policy for providing nutrition to families with HIV/AIDS patients. Brenan was on Wednesday visiting the Workers Treatment Centre (WTC) at Kololo. He said poor nutrition had a great impact on people living with HIV. Brenan who is now the
THE First Lady, Mrs. Janet Museveni, has hailed the efforts and commitment manifested by different individuals and organisations engaged in fighting against HIV/AIDS in Uganda in particular and Africa in general. She said similar commitment was important for Africa to get rid of hunger, poverty and famine. Museveni
Six Ugandan students and two secondary school teachers are to participate in the Model United Nations General Assembly (MUNGA) scheduled for July 12 in the UK. MUNGA is a student event organised by the British Council to equip youths with skills to investigate a issues on human rights and citizenship, rights to health
Uganda s First Lady Janet Museveni yesterday hosted African First Ladies to discuss the HIV/AIDS scourge on the continent. They included Queen Simbonelo Mbikiza ( Swaziland ), Maureen Mwanawasa ( Zambia ), Jeanette Kagame ( Rwanda ), Lucy Kibaki ( Kenya ), Ethel Wamu
ONLY 48.5% of sexually active secondary school students in Kayunga district use condoms. In a recent interview, Robert Kabiyambi, a researcher and the director of community awareness and response on AIDS (CARA), said the result showed how carelessly the students lived. Kabiyambi said 30.8% of female students interviewe
THE United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has given US$6m to Uganda and five other African countries to enhance medical injection safety programmes. The programmes aim at reducing the transmission of HIV/AIDS through contaminated injections. The donation will support projects in Uganda,
PEOPLE who will test HIV positive will be entitled to free HIV/AIDS treatment and their partners after the HIV/AIDS countrywide survey to be carried out by the Ministry of Health. The ministry coordinator of voluntary counselling and testing, Dr. Zainabu Akol, recently said that the survey would take place in June.
AN AIDS Information Centre (AIC) which opened in Busia in March, has tested 379 people. By May 25, 128 people had tested positive while 251 were negative. The centre served the five sub-counties of Lumino, Buhehe, Lunyo, Masaba and Masafu. The Unit laboratory assistant, Godfrey Barasa, told journalists in his laborator
AT least 20,000 people visited the AIDS information centre (AIC) stall at the western region trade fair seeking counselling services. We were overwhelmed by the number of visitors to our stall. Our estimates are that close or more than 20,000 adults and young people visited us in the one week of the trade fair, AIC cou
GULU Regional Referral Hospital has been equipped with new computerised machines for testing and monitoring HIV/AIDS patients. This was revealed by the medical superintendent, Dr. Felix Kaducu during the opening of the new maternity ward on May 29. Kaducu said that the Ministry of Health through the AIDS Control Progra
ONLY four weeks after introducing free Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) treatment in Rakai district, 90 people have already started on it. Some of them are reported to be having a magical recovery from their sicknesses. This response, says Dr. Robert Mayanja the Rakai director of health services, will boost the district wh
THE United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) yesterday signed a deal with The Aids Support Organisation (TASO) to provide them with food assistance worth US$932,294 (about sh1.8b). The one-year agreement, signed by WFP country representative Ken Davies and TASO director Dr. Alex Coutinho at WFP office in Kampala, take
IN 1974 while attending a drug party organised by fellow drug addicts, Walter Heidenreich was suddenly possessed by the Holy Spirit. Like a blinding flash that transformed wicked Saul to holy St. Paul, the spirit changed Heidenreich to a soldier of Christ. He underwent a spiritual revolution and since then he has been
UGANDA has registered the world s fourth highest number of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs). According to the 2004 World Refugee Survey released this week by the United States Committee for Refugees (USCR), Uganda has about 1.4 million IDPs. The report said Sudan , with about 4.
The Uganda Human Rights Commission (UHRC) has recommended that HIV positive people be exempted from paying graduated tax. People living with HIV/Aids should be exempted from paying taxes to save them from demanding work, UHRC said in an 85-page report launched on Tuesday by health minister Brig. Jim Muhwezi (left).
THE northern regional Police commander, Joram Baryayanga, has warned the people in the internally displaced people s (IDPs) camps against defilement. Baryayanga sounded the warning to IDPs in Palaro camp after a visit by Gulu district leaders recently. The Police is receiving a lot of reports on rampant defilement in t
TRADITIONAL healers in Busoga have been advised against the habit of indulging in sexual affairs with their clients. The Ssabataka (leader) of the baswezi traditional healers in Busoga region, Walumbe Maganda, said most male healers entice their female clients to go to bed with them. Interestingly the habit also involv
THE resident district commissioner of Jinja, Mugisha Muhwezi, has denied reports that he labelled the Bishop of Jinja Diocese, Joseph Willigers, a sinner. Muhwezi said the reports were a misrepresentation of what had transpired. He said he only advised civic and religious leaders in the district against stigmatising pe
The Uganda Human Rights Commission (UHRC) has recommended that HIV positive people be exempted from paying graduated tax. People living with HIV/Aids should be exempted from paying taxes to save them from demanding work, UHRC said in an 85-page report launched on Tuesday by health minister Brig. Jim Muhwezi. UHRC s
PEACE, love and unity is the message I carry with me from Senegal to the people of Uganda . Those were the words of Ismael Lo, the world famous Senegalese Afro-pop artiste, on his arrival in Kampala yesterday. Isamel Lo arrived in the country on Monday with 12 members of his group, his manager Bouya Ndoye and public r
SOROTI resident district commissioner Musa Ecweru has told the Uganda Network of AIDS Service Organisation (UNASO) to pay more attention to war-affected areas. Ecweru said the Lord s Resistance Army rebel activities in Acholi, Lango and Teso increased the rate of HIV/AIDS infection among the people. The rebels rap
Health minister Brig. Jim Muhwezi has warned people against selling the anti-retroviral drugs provided to AIDS patients by the Government. Muhwezi said this in a speech read by Prof. Emmanuel Kaijuka while opening an office for the National Drug Authority (NDA) in Jinja recently. He said people got the drugs from gazet
Pretoria - Women with physically violent and controlling male partners are at an increased risk of HIV infection says a South African research. HIV/AIDS is more widespread among women in sub-Saharan Africa than any other population. Although violence from a male partner and relationship inequalities are thought to be a
The catchy alphabetical slogan - Abstain, Be faithful, Condom use (ABC)- captures the spirit that has helped make Uganda one of sub-Saharan Africa s rare success stories in the fight against AIDS. From a 1992 peak HIV prevalence of 15% (30% among pregnant women in urban areas), the figure plummeted to a national averag
UNICEF Executive Director Carol Bellamy has deplored the plight of the 44,000 night commuter children in northern Uganda , reports Hamis Kaheru. I have seen many disturbing images during my time with Unicef but few of them are as shocking as the sight of the night commuters, she said in a May 28 statement. Bellamy,
JINJA director of health services Dr. Stephen Kirya has decried the high rate of HIV/AIDS in the district. He said whereas the national average figures were at 6.2%, Jinja’s rate was between 10-15%. Kirya was giving a report on HIV/AIDS in Bugiri district at the launching of voluntary counselling and testing services a
OVER 600 Kenyans living with HIV/AIDS cross to Uganda every month to seek for voluntary counselling and testing of HIV/AIDS services. Pade Luke, the coordinator of Gisu Bukedi Women Association (GIKE) based in Tiira, Busia, said this while meeting a delegation led by Busia resident district commissioner Patrick Bageya
Angelina Wapakhabulo has a heart for St Balikudembe (Owino) Market. On December 11, 2001, she walked into the market and got lost for two hours, but this did not in any way deter her mission. When finally she got the market vendors leader, Godfrey Kayongo, he was surprised not only to see a deputy prime minister s wife
THE British and US governments have signed an understanding to collaborate in their support to Uganda ’s programmes against HIV/AIDS. The British High Commissioner, Adam Wood, on Wednesday said he and US ambassador Jimmy Kolker signed a statement committing their countries to enhanced collaboration in supporting Uganda
A UNITED States Senator Mary Laundrieu has called for a review of adoptions laws in Uganda to allow for easier adoption of children into safe and loving families. She also called for increased access to anti-retroviral drugs to enable parents with AIDS live longer and more productive lives to care for their children.
AMERICAN senators have hailed Uganda for her fight against HIV/AIDS. Visiting Soroti recently, Senator Mary Landrieu said Uganda was the international leader in the fight against the pandemic, adding that the country should also lead in providing for AIDS orphans. Landrieu together with a group of US senators visited U
THE executive director of the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize Committee has praised President Yoweri Museveni for his efforts in helping resolve regional conflicts and combating the spread of HIV/AIDS. Professor Geir Lundestad, who has also been the secretary to the committee of five distinguished Norwegians since 1990,
The Kyabazinga, Henry Wako Muloki, has decried the high rate of moral degeneration among the youth. Launching the voluntary counselling and testing centre at Buyinja sub-county in Bugiri district recently, Muloki urged parents to strengthen cultural values in homes. He, however, told the people to ignore some customs l
THE World Food Programme (WFP) plans to extend its feeding span in Moyo hospital from TB patients to HIV/AIDS patients. This was revealed by the WFP head of Pakelle sub-office, Alfred Odera in Moyo at a workshop last Thursday. We give complementary food to people suffering from TB and we would like to extend it to HIV/
THE AIDS Integrated Model (AIM) districts programme has spent over sh3b to revamp laboratory services in the country. Speaking on Friday during the hand-over at the Ranch on the Lake in Lweza, the AIM tuberculosis laboratory services manager, Dr. Samson Haumba, said the funding was part of a comprehensive and sustainab
THE Mbarara Community Hospital director, Nathan Kalema, has stressed the importance of mass awareness on condom use. The people should be taught how to use condoms properly other than merely giving them condoms. You can t supply the guns to the soldiers without teaching them how to shoot. Otherwise they might end up sh
A UNITED States Senator Mary Landrieu has hailed Uganda for its fight against HIV/Aids. She, however, asked the country to refocus on caring for the orphans. Uganda is a recognised international leader in the fight against HIV/Aids. The country has an opportunity to become a leader in providing for orphans, she said.
THE regional manager for the Aids Integrated Model (AIM), Mary Jane Musungu, has said sh35b has been injected into the war against HIV/AIDS in eastern Uganda . Musungu was addressing participants at a workshop organised by Kumi district in conjunction with AIM to gather proposals on how to fight HIV/AIDS in the distric
Jinja resident district commissioner Mugisha Muhwezi has irked Christians by saying Jinja Diocese Bishop Joseph Willigers is a sinner. Muhwezi, who was speaking at the inauguration of Jinja Network for People with HIV/AIDS at the Town Hall recently, said the Bishop was a sinner just like other people. He was stressing
It was a moment of triumph for Uganda . A grand party was in progress. Princess Anne of Britain was present to grace the occasion. That was on September 22, 1998. The function was the inauguration of Mildmay, the £3.5m Hospice for AIDS patients centre at Lweza. For Emmanuel Pinto and Ruth Simms, it was more than a part
THE spread of HIV/AIDS in Moyo is still very high despite vigorous anti-AIDS campaigns, writes a Vision Reporter. In an April monthly report from the Voluntary Counseling and Confidential Testing, the number of the affected has grown by about 4%, bringing to 507 the total number of people affected in the district. Marg
KAMUKUZI division in Mbarara district has launched a house-to-house HIV/AIDS awareness campaign. LC3 chairman Sam Rubatsimbira recently said the campaign was designed to teach the community the dangers of HIV/AIDS and how to avoid its spread. Rubatsimbira launched the campaign at Mbarara Mixed Primary school. He sai
Mbarara Community Hospital director Nathan Karema has warned residents against washing and re-using condoms. Karema was recently lecturing women on the use of the female condom (femidom) at the hospital. He said men told him during a recent workshop that they washed used condoms with hot water before using them again,
Night Aber is a mother of three. With innocence written all over her face, she coyly exhibits youthful exuberance with an infectious smile. But she has another story. One of the survival of a single mother living with HIV, abandoned by her husband and left alone with her HIV positive children. Night appeared in a The N
OVER 10,000 households in the all the districts in the country are to be covered in the national HIV/AIDS sero-behavioural survey to be carried out next month. The survey, which is the second since 1988, will be carried out by the Ministry of Health to obtain accurate estimates of the HIV/AIDS prevalence in
KAYUNGA district chairperson Steven Dagada Wataala has warned AIDS counsellors against spreading rumours. You have been trained to carry out a very delicate exercise. How you deliver results of the tests determines your client s response. I don t want to hear about mental breakdowns caused by careless medical workers.
A commissioner in the Health Service Commission (HSC), Prof. George Kirya, has said HIV should be categorised as a chronic disease to enable people living with HIV/AIDS to get treatment until they die. Kirya, a virologist and former High Commissioner to Britain, was a guest speaker at the eastern region
UGANDA will start a new HIV/AIDS vaccine trial in July this year, Prof. Fred Wabwire, the principal investigator of Makerere University-Walter Reed Project (MU-WRP) has said. Wabwire said the HIV-1 DNA plasmid vaccine would be tested on 30 uninfected volunteers aged between 18-40 years in Kampala. They will be monitore
ORGANISATIONS working on HIV/AIDS prevention yesterday denied distributing condoms to pupils. President Yoweri Museveni on Sunday, while in Rakai said some organisations and people were distributing condoms to primary schools and described the act as dangerous. Cathy Watson, the communication director of the Straight T
MBARARA district director of health services Dr. Amooti Bwera Kaguna has advised parents of defiled children to have them treated quickly to avoid tetanus. This should be done before 72 hours elapse to prevent the wounds in their private parts from getting contaminated with tetanus and
THE UN Economic Commission for Africa chief, K.Y. Amoako, arrived in Uganda last evening for the commission and African Development Bank s annual meetings that start this morning at Speke Resort Munyonyo. Speaking at Entebbe International Airport on arrival, Amoako issued an urgent call to African finance ministers, ce
PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has attacked the distribution of condoms to primary school pupils, describing it as dangerous and disastrous. I am going to review this issue. I will open war on the condom sellers. Instead of saving life they are promoting promiscuity among young people, Museveni said. Museveni was on Saturda
Although they are still sexually active, older men lag behind in condom use, an official of the STD AIDS Control Programme (ACP) Vasta Kibirige has said. Kibirige said many people wrongly consider older men as retired generals and therefore organisations which campaign for safer sex tend to leave them out. When supplyi
Hellen works at an AIDS clinic in rural Uganda as an administrative clerk. Like her clients, she lives with HIV and receives anti-retroviral drugs (ARVs) at the same clinic. Since she shares their experience in living with HIV/AIDS and taking the medication, she is able to respond to their concerns better. Working at
IT is a matter of time before health experts begin riding into villages testing people for TB, malaria, syphilis and HIV. Dr. Dennis Lwamafa, the commissioner for national disease control department, says the mobile labs will be more effective because most dispensaries do not have laboratory facilities. Lab services ha
THE Church of Uganda has clarified that it allows the use of condoms among married couples only. The church approves the use of the condom in the context of marriage, for use as a device in family planning matters and as a device to curb sexually transmitted diseases including HIV/AIDS, Jackson Turyagyenda, the church
ONCE in a while, a truly head-turning talent surfaces. The latest subject seeks to be taken seriously, but through a genre, most Ugandan music fans do not take much notice of gospel hip-hop. That notwithstanding, Paul Ocen Okirori aka APZ, is set to make an impact. APZ stands for Alpha, Paul, and the Z is Omega, which
THE director of Lira Referral hospital, Dr. Peter Kusolo, has said people who intentionally infect others with HIV should face 18 years in jail. Giving a public lecture on HIV/AIDS at Lira Hospital recently, Kusolo said some people maliciously infected others. He said those caught intentionally transmitting the virus s
A study commissioned by the Uganda Women s Network (UWONET)has called for the abolition of widow inheritance and polygamy. The study code named The Link between the Domestic Relations Bill (DRB) and Poverty in Uganda was conducted in Apac, Pallisa and Mubende districts. It revealed that widow inheritance and polygamy c
THE Kyabazinga of Busoga, Henry Muloki, has urged religious and cultural leaders to unite and fight HIV/AIDS, saying they were influential people through whom mobilisation could be effectively conducted. He urged residents to ignore backward and outdated customs like inheritance of widows and early marriages because th
THE United States ambassador, Jimmy Kolker, has advised the youth to become role models in the fight against HIV/AIDS in the local community. Speaking at the launch of Agali Awamu Welding and Vocational School at Kijjabwemi in Masaka Municipality recently, Kolker advised the youth to learn financial management and deve
DHL, an international courier firm, and pharmaceutical firm Merck Sharpe and Dohme (MSD) have signed a deal to speed up delivery of AIDS drugs to Uganda at a subsidised price, a statement has said. The deal is in preparation for an anticipated increase in the number of people who will use anti-retroviral drugs in the n
FOUR of his six wives have died of AIDS-related illnesses since 1996. Now Clement Matovu, 47, has the enormous task of taking care of 13 children in his home in Kalungi village, Kakuuto county, Rakai district. The two other wives are not with him. Matovu does not consider one of them his wife, because since she left he
THE Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is now less prevalent in Uganda because people are having fewer sexual partners, British researchers have reported. Thanks to the word of mouth, there are now 60% fewer casual sexual acts compared to 10 years ago, the researchers reported in the April 30 issue of the journal Scien
UGANDA could earn millions of dollars if plans by the foreign affairs ministry to export the country s HIV/AIDS experience materialised. The move would make Uganda the first country in the world to demonstrate its willingness to share expertise and knowledge as part of first ever-global fight against the scourge. M
THE Parliamentary Advocacy Forum (PAFO) should abandon their campaign against the third term and mobilise the population against HIV/AIDS, the state health minister Capt. Mike Mukula (right) advised on Thursday. He made the remarks during a press conference in Kampala organised by Uganda Cares, a private and public
All is set for Tanzanian crooner Mr Nice s performances in Uganda . The Tanzanian Takeu style crooner, (real name Lucas Mkenda, 24,) jetted into the country yesterday and will perform at the Sheraton Kampala Hotel gardens tomorrow. Takeu is coined from the three East African countries -- Tanzania,
The World Bank has earmarked sh88m to fight HIV/AIDS related illness in Kumi district, reports Julius Okwi. During a planning session in Mukono district, the Kumi district population officer, Joseph Okaali, said the fund would be utilised through community based organisation and individuals. Joseph Okaali was speaking
THE Aids Support Organisation (TASO) yesterday announced that it had started offering free Antiretroviral (ARV) therapy to 3,000 patients. The Executive Director, Alex Coutinho, told journalists at the Taso headquarters in Mulago that they had received US$3.6m (sh6.8b) for the first phase. I am glad to inform you that
UGANDA risks not achieving the Millennium Development Goals unless conflict ends, the director of economic and social policy, Lawrence Egulu, has said. Closing the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions workshop on the role of trade unions in conflict resolution and peace building in Kampala on Friday, Egulu
NGOs have given sh49m to support vulnerable children in Bugiri district. Representatives from the FOC-Rev Ministries and UNICEF signed a memorandum of understanding at Bugiri district headquarters recently. FOC-Rev Ministries is an NGO giving support to people living with HIV/AIDS in the country. The UNICEF eastern reg
THE AIDS Integrated Model (AIM) district programme has donated sh120m to the districts of Rukungiri, Bushenyi and Ntungamo for the management of sexually transmitted infections (STIs). The western and central regional HIV/TB medical officer for AIM, Dr. Raymond Byaruhanga, on Friday said each district would get a grant
SHE was frail, frightened, and just about to fizzle out. But now, looking back over her shoulders, Rosemary Namuli is clapping her hands and giving thanks to the Lord for a positive turnaround. The proverbial dark cloud over her head, has given way to a silver lining. She recounts: I tested (for HIV) in 2000, and was p
THE first idea that pops up in your head when you hear of Uganda Bikers Association (UBA) is a bunch of zealous youths probably mad about bicycle or motorcycle rallying. And yet UBA is a completely different mixed bag, with a different mission. Unlike the rally hunks who do it more for fun, the UBA has its mind set on
AN AIDS Treatment Information Centre (ATIC), the first of its kind in Africa has opened at the Institute of Public Health, Mulago Hospital. The unique centre will provide answers to all queries from health workers on HIV/AIDS care and management for the entire African region. Its vision is to develop a sustainable fram
THE Police have blamed the high HIV/AIDS infections among officers to most barracks being surrounded by slums. Senior superintendent of police Moses Eku said the location of slums made policemen prone to the AIDS scourge because such places exposed them to promiscuous behaviour. All barracks whether police or military,
Night Aber is a mother of three. With innocence written all over her face, she coyly exhibits youthful exuberance with an infectious smile. But she has another story. One of the survival of a single mother living with HIV, abandoned by her husband and left alone with her HIV positive children. Night appeared in a The N
UGANDA s globally acclaimed anti-AIDS success has paved way for the United States of America and other countries struggle against the pandemic that has affected at least 40 million people worldwide. The US anti-AIDS coordinator, Randall Tobias, told a news conference in Berlin recently that the US scheme was based on U
BUSIA district health services director Dr. Oundo Bwire has cautioned HIV positive couples against pregnancy. He said pregnancy was expensive and risky among HIV positive women because they faced complications such as anaemia and dehydration. He was speaking at the voluntary counselling and testing (VCT) site promotion
THE administrator of Mbarara University Teaching Hospital, John Baptist Mujuni, has announced that the Government has introduced free anti-retroviral (ARVs) therapy for children infected with HIV/AIDS. The Government has passed a policy of offering free anti-retroviral drugs to HIV/AIDS infected children, he said.
Large-scale human trials of two gels designed to combat the Aids virus are being planned by British scientists to be carried out in Africa. Millions of people around the world could soon protect themselves against the HIV virus with the simple dosage. Experts say around 60 gels, known as microbicides, are now in develo
Kyabazinga Henry Wako Muloki has pledged his Kingdom s support in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Opening the TASO branch in Jinja recently, Muloki said Busoga would aim at discouraging people from discriminating against those living with HIV/AIDS. He called upon the private sector to assist those living with AIDS. Mul
Kabarole district has received over sh77m for the Community-led HIV/AIDS Initiative (CHAI) sub-project of the Uganda HIV/AIDS Control Project, reports Frederick Nyakabwa. The district director of health services, Dr. Kabagambe Rugamba said they were handing over cheques to 34 approved projects that are supporting HIV/A
FORMER rebel leader and priestess Alice Auma Lakwena has said she wants to set up a herbal pharmaceutical factory to treat HIV/AIDS patients. Sources said the government had intimated that it would give financial assistance to Lakwena for her activities. The sources said the Government had also offered to accommodate L
MEDICENES Sans Frontier (MSF), a medical NGO has started giving free anti-retroviral drugs (ARVs) to the people living with HIV/AIDS in the five districts of West Nile. This was revealed by the secretary for health, Louis Opiku to district councilors, LCIII chairpersons, civil servants and youths recently. MSF started
THE 18-year-long northern insurgency has increased the number of orphans in need of support, the Uganda Women Effort to Save Orphans (UWESO) has said. The UWESO national executive committee chairperson, Marcella Mukasa, recently said the insecurity in northern and eastern Uganda had hampered the implementation of their
THE Government plans to come up with a policy to provide for families supporting orphans. While closing a workshop in Entebbe recently, gender minister Zoe Bakoko Bakoru said the Government wanted to discourage the institutionalisation of orphans. Bakoko said orphans would be helped to settle with relatives and well wi
United Nations Children s Fund (UNICEF) requested for $7m in 2003 to cope with the humanitarian problems in Uganda in the 2004 Consolidated Appeals Process (CAP) report. The 2003, UN CAP report requested for $92m to cope with these conflicts and was given $88m. For 2004, the UN bodies are asking for $128m, meaning an e
KAMWOKYA Christian Caring Community (KCCC) has been selected by President Bush s Programme to assist Africa in the fight against Aids. KCCC is one of the few organisations who are to offer free anti-retroviral drugs (ARVs). We have been meeting a team of experts from America to assess our ability to manage the ARVs. We
MORTALITY rates in East Africa have continued to soar, despite programmes that have been put in place to address them. According to the Arusha-based Commonwealth Regional Health Secretariat, it is estimated that death ratios range up to 1,000 per 100,000 live births, while infant mortality is about 145 per 1,000 live b
AMERICAN movie sensation Natalie Portman concluded her visit to Uganda yesterday. She called on donor countries to double their soft loans to increase the recipients ability to handle severe burdens, among them HIV/AIDS orphans. Portman, an ambassador of hope for the Foundation for International Community Assistance (F
AMERICAN movie sensation, Natalie Portman is in Uganda . Portman who has starred in the famous Star Wars triology as queen Amadala, and was named an Ambassador of hope for Foundation for International Community Assistance FINCA, is in Uganda to study how micro-loans have helped people in developing countries. Portm
AN estimated 40% of new HIV infections in Uganda are occurring among married couples, a report by the country director for the Centre for Disease Control and Global Aids Programme (GAP) Uganda, Dr. Jonathan Mermin, has revealed. Mermin told the US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations Sub-committee on African Affairs t
MEDICENES Sans Frontiers, a France-based medical NGO is distributing free Anti-retroviral AIDS drugs to the people living with HIV/AIDS in the five districts of West Nile. The district secretary for health, Louis Opiku, said this recently while addressing councillors, civil servants and youths in Moyo Town Hall. Moyo
STATE minister for sports Henry Okello Oryem has promised to include health awareness messages at all sporting events in the country. Under the policy all sports federations and associations will be compelled to disseminate HIV/AIDS, Malaria and Measles preventive messages at all sporting competitions. He said that the
THE UNICEF regional director for East and Southern Africa has said the number of children orphaned by AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa has reached 13 million and is expected to double within a decade. Per Engebak said there was unprecedented orphan crisis especially in East and Southern Africa region, which requires radicall
PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has said colonial distortions stagnated development of African countries. He, however, said it was not right to solely blame colonialists for the shameful phenomenon, saying Africans were too weak to defend themselves. He said the colonialists left behind armies of illiterates, gave Africans l
EIGHTY-Five percent of married and old men in Kampala have young sexual partners, Dr. Edson Muhwezi, an HIV/AIDS expert of the Behaviour Surveillance programme said on Thursday. The married and old men are aged between 40 and 54 years. Males tend to have younger sexual partners and are more likely to have non-regular p
THE US government is to track the sale of HIV/AIDS drugs on the black market in Uganda and over 100 other countries. A document from the office of the global AIDS coordinator said the US would fight diversion, counterfeiting and sale of HIV/AIDS drugs on the black market under the five-year global strategy dubbed Presi
ONLY 48.5% of sexually active secondary school students in Iganga use condoms. In an interview last week, Patricia Nakanjako, a researcher based at Busoga University, said this showed how carelessly the students lived. Nakanjako said 30.8% of the students interviewed used contraceptive pills to protect themselves again
Males in Kampala are having sex with younger sexual partners and are more likely than females to have non-regular partners, a study on Knowledge Attitudes and Behavioural Practices to establish Baseline Information on HIV/AIDS Care, Prevention and Control in the district has revealed. The study, conducted between April
PATRICIA de Lille, leader of South Africa s Independent Democratic Party, took a very public HIV test as part of her campaign - and challenged all the other candidates in the country s third democratic election (on April 14) to do the same. Not many will, for fear of embarrassing senior colleagues who dare not do so: o
THE World Health Organisation regional director, Dr Ebrahim Samba, has hailed the planned national HIV/AIDS survey, reports Jude Etyang. Samba was speaking at a press conference at Entebbe Airport after the recent international food summit. A sero-behavioural pilot study is planned for Kampala, Masindi, Lira and Tororo
The USAID-funded Aids Integrated Model District Programme (AIM) will start a campaign on voluntary HIV-testing for pregnant women in 16 districts, reports Chris Magoba. The AIM regional manager, Dr. Raymond Byaruhanga, said this at the prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) training workshop for 45 health w
THE director general for health services, prof. Francis Omaswa, has said the national HIV/AIDS sero-behavioural survey will start this month. In Africa, this is the first of its kind and the biggest ever, Omaswa said. He said the survey aims at establishing the accurate prevalence of HIV/AIDS. Omaswa made the remarks w
THE AIDS Support Organisation (TASO) is set to start giving free Anti-Retroviral (ARV) drugs to its clients countrywide, the director, Dr. Alex Coutinho, has said. Coutinho told the visiting British State Secretary for International Development, Hilary Benn, that TASO had started preparing its clients for the Anti-Retr
She was presenting a paper on fighting HIV/AIDS at the end of the All Africa Food and Nutrition Security Conference at Speke Resort Munyonyo on Saturday. She said HIV/AIDS had blotted out decades of progress resulting in a fall in life expectancy from 56 years in 1968 to 42 years in 1999. She said the impact of AIDS on
The Aids Integrated Model District Programme (AIM) is to start a campaign for voluntary testing for HIV of pregnant women in 16 districts, USAID regional manager Dr. Raymond Byaruhanga has said. Byaruhanga said this during a workshop for 45 health workers on prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV/Aids at hot
British scientists plan large-scale clinical trials in five African countries of gels designed to combat AIDS, a senior British Government official said Saturday. International Development Secretary Hilary Benn told the BBC an announcement was impending on the three-year trials of the vaginal gels, called microbicides.
The Aids Support Organisation (TASO) will soon give free anti-retroviral (ARV) drugs to about 90% of the poor in western Uganda . The regional TASO manager, Michael Matsiko, said this in Mbarara town while meeting journalists during a tour of the district recently. The tour on food marketing and nutrition in Uganda was
I am looking for a man, it shall be on my terms, we will negotiate one to one, but don t get me wrong I am not advertising, Noerine Kaleeba, Uganda s heroine in the fight against HIV AIDS said. I put down the chopsticks I was having difficulty to use, to listen more attentively. When Noerine lost her husband Christoph
Traditional and modern health practitioners together against AIDS and other diseases (THETA) have formed a new board of governors. Nyine Bitahwa of the Rukararwe Partnership for Rural Development takes over from Prof Anok Bongo as the new board chairman. In his inaugural speech, Bitahwa called for more involvement of t
THE state minister for primary education, Namirembe Bitamazire has decried the prevalence of HIV/Aids in both lower and higher institutions of learning. We are still facing a big challenge of Aids in our institutions. This has affected the performance of the education sector. Most students are orphans while several oth
An LC1 chairman in Kilembe sub-county, Kasese district has advised parents to test their children for HIV/AIDS before they pay school fees, reports John Nzinjah. If the child tests positive, there is no need to waste your money, William Bahati Biregho, the chairman Kyambogho village, said. Biregho was addressing mourne
A network for people living with HIV/AIDS was on Monday launched in Ntungamo district. The district advisory council on HIV/AIDS was also established to monitor HIV;/AIDS operations. The executive director National Guidance Empowerment Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS, Maj. Rubaramira Ruranga, called for joint ef
THE visiting World Health Organisation (WHO) regional director in charge of Africa has advised health workers to involve the media in their activities. Dr. Ebrahim M. Samba, (below), yesterday told journalists at the WHO country office in Kampala, you are our privileged partners because we work with the population yet
AN AIDS workshop was held at the Teachers Resource Centre in Kumi recently. The workshop for LC5 councillors emphasised the reasons why adolescents practiced unsafe sex at an early age especially in eastern Uganda . Stephen Watanga, working with the International Care and Relief-Uganda (ICR-U) said adolescents were con
Hima Cement employees and residents of Hima Town will get free HIV testing and counselling following the launch of the first Voluntary Counselling and Testing (VCT) Centre in the area. Under the initiative, employees would get free anti-retroviral (ARVs) drugs. The community will benefit from Government aided programme
UNPROTECTED sex in camps has led to the increase of HIV/AIDS expectant mothers and early pregnancies in Gulu district. The vicar of Gulu Diocese, Richard Kayondo, said recently while visiting Lugazi Bishop, Mathias Ssekamanya. HIV/AIDS cases among expectant mothers at Lacor Hospital are on the increase. Parents have se
THE First Lady, Janet Museveni, on Friday launched the Anti-retroviral (ARV) Clinic at Hoima Referral Hospital. The clinic, operated by the Joint Clinical Research Centre, is the first to be opened in the country. Mrs Museveni commended the Joint Clinical Research Centre for their efforts to extend services to benefit
Uganda and four other African countries are to host trials for new special gels developed by British scientists to prevent the transmission of the HIV virus, the BBC has reported. The gels, known as microbicides, could help millions of people around the world with a simple dose to protect themselves against HIV, the
THE programme to give free ARVs to people with HIV/AIDS is ready but will start in mid April when the first consignment arrives. Dr. Alex Kamugisha, the state minister for primary health, said ARVs would be supplied to health centre fours at county levels before the plans are scaled up to cover all health centres, priv
SOROTI woman MP Alice Alaso has recommended that the government distribute free anti-retroviral drugs (ARVs) to the internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the north. She said because of the massive displacement of people by the Lord s Resistance Army, the rate of HIV/AIDS infection in northern Uganda wa
FORT Portal Hospital has received laboratory equipment for HIV/AIDS testing from the Uganda AIDS Commission, reports Raymond Baguma. The hospital medical superintendent, Dr. Shaban Abdallah, said this was part of the Government programme to provide free HIV testing services country-wide. The hospital now has capac
THE Government has appointed former premier Kintu Musoke to head a task force to implement the Uganda component of President George Bush s plan to fight AIDS. The plan, first announced by Bush in his January 2003 state of the union address, is a five-year US$15b initiative designed to support 15 African and Caribbean c
President Yoweri Museven is a determined general, writes David Mukoli. Rather than commanding from the rear, he is at the battleground. Early last year, Museveni left Kampala to pitch camp in Gulu to oversee UPDF operations against the Lord s Resistance Army (LRA) bandits. He drew the strategy, coordination and deploym
AS Uganda embarks on the reduction of the HIV infection rates through the Programme of Mother to Child HIV Transmission (PMTCT), there is an urgent need to address the issue of breast-feeding infants born to HIV- positive mothers. There is controversy surrounding HIV positive mothers breastfeeding their infants. It is
KAMPALA - A team of 16 bikers from, the Uganda Bikers Association (UBA) are in Nairobi to ride in an HIV/AIDS awareness campaign that started from Johannesburg to Kampala. The team, was flagged off at Entebbe Airport by Mike Mukula, the state minister for health. The bikers were expected to arrive at Kampala s Constitu
THE Lira district speaker, William Onyanga, has challenged Ugandans to emulate the late Philly Bongole Lutaya for declaring his HIV/AIDS status. He described the Lutaya as a courageous Ugandan and freedom fighter. Onyanga was the chief guest at a workshop on Wednesday at Blue Valley Guest House in Lira municipality.
THE PREVALENCE of the deadly HIV/AIDS in Uganda has stabilised. This is not good. It means that although the spread of the decease had been slowing down for the decade of the 1990s, it has now stopped decreasing In other words about the same percentage of people is catching the disease every year for the past three yea
TWELVE bikers arrived in Kampala on Sunday after a 6,000km trans-Africa journey in which they raised $35,000 for Uganda s Aids orphans. The seemingly spent men reached the City Square at about 12.30pm. They were welcomed by the UN Aids agency ( UNAIDS ) country representative, Dr. Reuben Del Prado, the patron of bikers
ARMY Commander Maj. Gen. Aronda Nyakairima has cautioned HIV-positive UPDF soldiers to avoid consulting witchdoctors instead of going to hospital. Nyakairima was launching the Joint Clinical Research Centre (JCRC) anti-retroviral (ARV) treatment programme at Bombo Military Hospital yesterday. He said the soldiers shoul
Major Rubaramira Ruranga, a self-confessed HIV-positive man, has fathered two HIV-negative babies. Ruranga, the executive director of the National Guidance and Empowerment Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS, said he had the children with his second wife, who was also HIV-positive. He said the four-year-old girl and
The pro-third term pressure group has urged primary school pupils 2006 elections. to vote for President Yoweri Museveni. Special presidential assistant for research and information, Frank Tumwebaze, on Friday asked pupils of Kayina Primary School in Namayumba, Wakiso district to support President Museveni come It was
THE state minister for housing, Francis Babu, has said the Government spends over sh219m on HIV/AIDS and Primary health care services monthly. He was on Saturday speaking at a seminar on HIV/AIDS initiative organised by the Kikuubo Twegate community at Astoria Hotel. We are so committed to this cause and it s the reaso
THE First Lady, Janet Museveni, has urged the youth to shun pornography and other forms of immorality. Opening the Makerere University Students annual health week at the University Main Hall on Monday, Mrs. Museveni hailed the students for their fight against HIV/AIDS. It gives a lot of hope for the future of the natio
ALTHOUGH HIV/AIDS is now a common illness, some people are still ignorant about the pandemic and look at people living with the virus as sinners paying for their evil deeds. Others regard them as people who are promiscuous. Tales of mothers living with HIV in Kalerwe, a Kampala suburb shows that such discriminative beh
LIRA mayor Peter Owiny has advised women in the district to practice family planning. Don t produce as if you have signed a contract with the world to produce. Have a limited number of children, a maximum of three, that you are able to keep, he said. Speaking at the Women s Day celebrations at Akii Bua Stadium on March
PARTICIPANTS at a recent civil-military relations course have recommended that condoms be part of the UPDF combat kit to reduce HIV/AIDS infections in the forces. The participants, who included members of Parliament, journalists and about 30 Uganda People s Defence Forces officers recommended the establishment of a Nat
THE French ambassador Jean Bernard Thiant has called for active use of condoms to control HIV/AIDS. He was speaking last week at the international women s day celebrations at Nyakagyeme Sub-County in Rukungiri. He commended the NRM government for its open policy on HIV/AIDS, which has reduced the infection rate. Wo
KALANGALA district Members of Parliament and local leaders tested for HIV/AIDS on the Women s Day celebration held at the district headquarters recently writes, Vision Reporter The Member of Parliament for Kyamuswa, Tim Lwanga, the district woman MP, Ruth Kavuma and the district LC5 chairman, Daniel Kikoola were among
WORLD Food Programme (WFP) deputy executive director Sheila Sisulu yesterday gave US$6,000 to the National Association of Children and Women Living with AIDS (NACWOLA). Sisulu and the WFP senior adviser on NGOs, Judith Symonds, are in the country on a tour of the WFP-aided projects that will take them to Gulu today.
UGANDANS will soon forget long days waiting to know their sero-status. In 60 seconds, one will know whether he or she has the virus or not, according to the technology developed by a Canadian firm. The anti-body test kit is an ultra-rapid aid for detecting HIV antibodies in blood. The test will be used by trained perso
FREE Aids drugs donated to Uganda were being sold in a private pharmacy on William Street in Kampala, Buganda Road Court has heard. Assistant Inspector of Police, Charles Maniraguha, told magistrate Olive Kazarwe that the drugs were being sold in Mercy Pharmacy owned by Juliet Katabira, a nurse. Diflucan that had
Fresh and dry banana leaves were yesterday turned into weapons as women traded insults for and against the third term during the Kampala district women s day celebrations in Kawempe. This prompted Kampala Mayor John Ssebaana Kizito, who was the chief guest, to blast women, saying they had other developmental issues to
THE first consignment of free anti-retroviral drugs (ARVs) for people with HIV/AIDS will arrive in the country mid next month, Dr. Alex Kamugisha, State minister for health has said. Appearing before the parliamentary committee on HIV/AIDS yesterday, Kamugisha said the drugs would be distributed free of charge to the m
The Speaker of Parliament, Edward Ssekandi, has said the Domestic Relations Bill (DRB) is not intended to oppress any religious sect, cultural settings or individuals. I have got so many petitions opposing some clauses in this bill. It is not intended to bring problems and instability in homes but to reconcile such pro
UNICEF has earmarked about $9.5m for support to 31 local governments this year. Four million dollars is to be disbursed to districts in the insurgent northern region. UNICEF northern regional manager Lena Schilot said this while meeting West Nile leaders at Nebbi district boardroom recently. She said the figure indicat
Plans for the construction King Oyo International Hospital have begun, reports Raymond Baguma. Toro Kingdom minister for planning Patrick Nyaika said the hospital was estimated to cost about $10m (sh19.2b). Nyaika recently said Kyenjojo district administration had offered land for construction on Nyantungo hill. He s
TOMORROW the First Lady, Janet Museveni, is expected to launch a health awareness programme at Makerere University, reports F. Ahimbisibwe. Addressing the press on Tuesday, Guild president Yusuf Kiranda said immorality among university students had risen. We have come out to join government efforts to fight against the
THE NATIONAL Women s HIV/AIDS campaign 2004 has been launched against a backdrop of big challenges in the fight against AIDS. President Museveni launched the campaign as part of the country s Women s Day celebrations in Kamuli, calling on the youth to abstain from sex till they are either done with their studies, or wh
ABOUT 70% of the youth aged between 12-25 who go to Mukono health centre for blood testing are HIV positive reports Joel Ogwang. Ruth Kawesa, the head of counseling and blood testing section at the centre recently said this while speaking at a recent Mukono town council meeting presided over by the Resident District Co
When Edith Bonabana lost her husband in a gruesome motor accident in 1984, she was depressed by the incident and lost hope in life. As a young mother who had just given birth to her fifth child, she predicted a difficult life ahead. Bonabana later realised that life still goes on. She got courage to bring up her toddle
WOMEN delegates attending the International Women s day have called for a third term for President Yoweri Museveni. In a veiled reference to the third term, thousands of women delegates decorated themselves in essanja (dry banana leaves), the symbol for third term agitators. In the protocol match past the VIP tent wher
Yesterday March, 8, 2004 again saw women the world over advance their struggle for equal opportunities with men in all spheres of life. For many Ugandans, particularly, the women activists, the emancipation of women has a long way to go. There are, however, some achievements to be celebrated during this year s Women s
Makerere University-Walter Reed Project is a collaboration between Makerere University, The Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine Inc. of the United States (HJF) and the U.S. Military HIV Research Program (USMHRP). The primary purpose of MUWRP is HIV Vaccine development and developing of
President Yoweri Museveni on Saturday praised the SOS Kinderdorf International for helping needy children worldwide. He was particularly impressed by the work done at three SOS children s villages in Kakiri, Entebbe, and Gulu, which he said had given hope to many orphaned children who would be desperate. I salute your
Masaka deputy resident district commissioner Teo Lule Ssenkungu has warned AIDS patients against smoking and drinking alcohol. She said this was a danger to their lives. Lule was on Tuesday addressing 35 HIV/AIDS volunteer inmates in Masaka Central Prison who were trained to sensitise and counsel their colleagues on HI
Today s Women s Day theme, HIV/AIDS; Challenges for women and the way forward , is relevant to Uganda because of the current trend of the pandemic where women, particularly girls are more vulnerable to HIV infection. Susan Muwanga, women in development officer, Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development (MGLSD),
More women than men have been infected with HIV/AIDs in the Sub Saharan Africa, according to recent HIV/AIDs studies. Women account for over 50% of those infected with HIV/Aids. In Uganda , young women especially those aged between 15 and 19 years are at a higher risk of infection than men. The 2004 Ministry of Gen
AS women around the world unite in celebrations to mark their achievements on the International Women s Day, Uganda has not been left out of the fete. All roads lead to Kamuli district today for this year s national celebrations. The day is a reminder that present freedom enjoyed by women world-over is as a result of t
Combating stigma and discrimination, focusing on home-based mechanisms, involvement of men in women s reproductive health needs, protection of women s rights and economic empowerment are among the recommended future action plans in the struggle for women s rights and equality by the women movement. TODAY, March 8,
MEDICAL workers in Lira district are to be given priority to access antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) because of the high risks they are exposed to when handling HIV/AIDS patients. The district secretary for health, Tony Ogwang, said this recently at a training workshop for health workers on palliative care and management of
PREGNANT women are avoiding drugs that prevent mother to child transmission of HIV/AIDS (PMTCT), Dr. David Kihumuro Apuuli, the director general of Uganda AIDS Commission has said. Kihumuro was on Monday launching the World AIDS campaign at the commission offices in Mengo, Kampala. He said less than 5% of women who
USAID director Vicki Moore on Tuesday said her agency would provide schools with youth survival kits to fight HIV/AIDS. The kits, made by Fountain Publishers, use the new triple F approach. Triple F stands for Facts and Fiction about AIDS and the Facilitator role of teachers. The kits were handed over by the managing d
Drought, AIDS and conflict have combined to create serious food shortages in half the countries in Africa, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) said in a report published on Monday. In eastern Africa, inadequate rainfall had left 7.2 million people facing food shortages in Ethiopia
People living with HIV/AIDS in Nebbi district are faced with poverty and lack of access to anti-retroviral drugs (ARVs). The chairperson, Nebbi AIDS Services Organisations Network Franklin Chonga, said this at the celebration of the World AIDS Day at Wadelai sub-county headquarters last week. He said some of the victim
UGANDA and 13 other nations will soon receive US$350 from the US to fight HIV/AIDS. The US embassy in Kampala announced on wednesday that these countries in Africa and the Caribbean comprise about 50% of the world s 40 million people living with HIV/AIDS. The embassy said the US started writing the cheques on Monday.
Poverty and inaccessibility to anti-retroviral (ARV) drugs are the most serious problems affecting people living with HIV/AIDS in Nebbi district, said Franklin Chonga, the chairperson of Nebbi AIDS Services Organisations Network. Chonga was speaking at the belated commemoration of the World AIDS day at Wadelai sub-coun
AN American company, Zebra Foundation Inc. plans to manufacture female panty condoms in Uganda . The move would make Uganda the first country outside the US to make the condoms under the Zebra trade-mark. Four officials from the company are in Uganda to seal the deal with the government. The visit is a follow up of
THE state minister for primary healthcare, Alex Kamugisha, has hailed the Uganda Bikers Association (UBA) who are going to ride from Johannesburg, South Africa to Kampala in an AIDS awareness campaign. Kamugisha yesterday flagged off five riders from Entebbe airport enroute to Johannesburg where they will join 10 other
The US will give money in the first wave of funding to organisations with existing infrastructure that can be used to deliver treatment quickly. 50,000 people are expected to receive treatment as a result of this funding, but at present it is unclear what proportion of the funding allocated in the first round will go t
UGANDAN sex workers scored their first victory for recognition yesterday when a parliamentary committee met them. The legal and parliamentary affairs committee, chaired by Dora Byamukama (Mwenge South), met the four-member executive of the prostitutes, commonly referred to as sex workers, at the Parliamentary Building
The Uganda Bikers Association (UBA) AIDS awareness and fundraising ride has received a sh54m Mitsubishi pickup from General Machinery Group of Companies. Twelve UBA riders will on February 28 embark on a 5,500-kilometre ride from South Africa . They would go through Botswana ,
THE deputy head of the German Mission, Holger Seubert, recently urged psychiatrists to counsel children orphaned by HIV/AIDS. He said this would minimise self-pity among the children and reassure them that the future is promising if they exploit their talents. According to the UNICEF report titled Africa s Generation o
OVER 700 people have been registered at The Aids Support Organisation (TASO) in Gulu since its inception in January, reports Tony Onena. We have registered 727 clients since the centre was opened. This is a good start, the manager, Abel Asiimwe, said. He said the centre had three doctors, two clinical officers, three n
After re-branding Protector Condom, the promoters, Population Services International (PSI), now plan a door-to-door awareness campaign and user sensitisation, officials have said. Our target is to have condoms in all commercial outlets countrywide like any other merchandise in shops, bars and lodges. Traders should not
President Yoweri Museveni has commended former American President Bill Clinton for helping poor countries to provide HIV/AIDS treatment to their people at a cheaper cost. The President said this on Thursday while meeting the head of the Clinton Foundation, Rajan Pandhare s delegation at Soroti Hotel. The team briefed t
THE Government has allowed private pharmaceutical companies to procure anti-retroviral (ARV) drugs on the international market. Dr. Elizabeth Namagala of the Ministry of Health broke the news at a seminar on ARV drugs, at the Child Health Development Centre recently. We have allowed the private sector to import ARVs an
BRIGADIER Jim Muhwezi, the Minister for Health, has said his ministry will provide nurses with HIV/AIDS risk allowances in addition to lunch and more protective gear to reduce likely infections. He said health workers infected with HIV/AIDS would be among the first people to get free anti-retroviral (ARV) drugs. Muhw
USE of condoms in the UPDF has gone up to a million pieces a year due to increased awareness among the combatants, an official has said. The AIDS control programme manager in the Ministry of Defence, Lt. Richard Rwanyonga, told The New vision during activities to mark the Army Week in Mubende recently that strategies h
THE Government has commended cultural institutions for their spirited fight against the AIDS pandemic. The Third Deputy Prime Minister, Henry Kajura (left), said revival of cultural institutions had fostered unity and bolstered Government development programmes. Participation in creating awareness on the dangers of the
THE Joint Clinical Research Centre (JCRC) has set up a branch at the UPDF headquarters in Bombo to boost the army s anti-HIV/AIDS efforts. The venture is part of the army s plan to set up a treatment and care facility for soldiers and their families living with HIV/AIDS. It will offer voluntary counselling and testing.
The high prevalence of the AIDS scourge has been blamed on breakdown of family values among the youths. There is a breakdown of family values among youths. Pornography, use of drugs like marijuana and recently, ekimansulo are the main reasons why AIDS is not decreasing, the MP for Sheema North, has said. Dr. Eliod Tumw
THE Aids Support Organisation (TASO) Jinja branch has handed over equipment worth sh15.45m to 44 children, reports Esther Mukyala. The equipment, which included sewing machines, carpentry and mechanical tools, were handed over to beneficiaries who had completed a nine-month apprenticeship course. Handing over the equip
VISITING German MPs have been impressed by the fight against AIDS. The MPs, who are members of the health and social security committee, pledged to lobby their government to increase funding for anti-AIDS projects to bolster the fight against the epidemic. The delegation head, Zoller Wolfgang, said
Jinja is one of the districts where people living with HIV/AIDS have not utilised the Government funds of Community HIV Initiative (CHAI) programme. Joy Rujojo, an executive member on the National HIV/AIDS commission, said, Its disheartening to disclose that district HIV/AIDS officers, Jinja inclusive, have returned CH
By profiling people living with HIV/AIDS and describing its devastating effects on them, I had no idea that one day I would be describing the impact of the scourge on myself. My articles on pop vocalist Prince Jjuuko, Livingstone Kasozi, Herbert Ssekabembe (RIP) among others, ran in 1995 and 1997 respectively. Eight ye
THE first consignment of the Anti Retroviral drug, the recommended anti-AIDS drug, arrives in the country this month and will be distributed freely nation-wide. The health services director-general, Prof. Francis Omaswa, on Wednesday said this at the weekly press briefing. Distribution of the drug will start in March a
THE Uganda Red Cross Society (URCS) has started public awareness campaigns on HIV/AIDS and hygiene in internally displaced people s camps in Kitgum and Pader districts. The URCS deputy secretary-general, Alice Uwase Anakur, recently said besides relief distribution, the body had realised the need to protect the IDPs fr
Atleast 25,000 of the babies born in Uganda every year have HIV, a virus that causes AIDS, a senior official in the ministry of health has said. Dr Alex Opio, the assistant commissioner of health services in charge of national disease control said this was due to the high rate of mother to child transmission (MTCT) of
International Air Ambulance (IAA) has launched free Aids/HIV treatment within their normal corporate medical insurance scheme. Tim Lwanga, the integrity state minister officially launched the package last week. Dr. Ian Clark, the IAA chief executive officer, said employees can now receive free Aids drugs in addition to
EVERAL districts have called upon the Ministry of Health to provide more laboratory personnel to do HIV testing in their health units. The Kassanda Health Centre clinical officer, Bbosa Nakabale, made the appeal at the closure of the Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission (PMTCT) of HIV/AIDS training workshop at En
Capt Mike Mukula, the state minister for health, has said Tororo district was chosen to pioneer in Government s initiative to offer free anti-retroviral drugs. Mukula said the pilot project, that kicked off earlier this month, has seen 100 motorcycles being distributed to district health workers and pioneers in Tororo
The Uganda Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS, (UBC) has set up a workers treatment centre in Kampala to protect employees and their families from AIDS. The UBC information resource manager, Robert Wanyama, said the idea is will encourage Government departments, non-Government organisations, and the private companies to pr
THE Rakai LC5 chairman, Vincent Semakula, has said the district needs about sh9b to implement the anti-AIDS campaign. He said the district council had endorsed the national anti-HIV/Aids strategy to fight the disease and its effects. We still have an uphill task. We are going to intensify care for orphans and widows an
THE Government has concluded plans to conduct a sero status survey geared at establishing the actual number of HIV/AIDS victims in the country. Capt. Mike Mukula, the health state minister, said this at the launch of a Staying Alive CD, with presentations by Ugandan activists against AIDS. Mukula said the government wa
The Government has finalised a national policy to provide free anti-retroviral drugs to needy people living with AIDS, health state minister Dr. Alex Kamugisha, has said. He said the generic drugs would be provided at a little fee to people who are not very poor. Kamugisha was representing President Yoweri Museveni at
Kasese district security committee has expressed worry over the increasing number of sex workers in Kasese town, reports John Nzinjah. A meeting of the security committee and representatives of the business community at Verina Hotel Gardens recently noted that sex trade had highly increased in the town centre and its s
It is a sunny day. Loice Alapo, 22, sits under a big mango tree, her crippled legs stretched out infront of her at Lwala Hospital in Kaberamaido. Her hands support her chin as she stares in space. The teenage mother, lost her baby two weeks ago while delivering. If it were not for her parents who rushed her to hospital
President Yoweri Museveni has urged the youth to be patriotic, avoid premarital sex and proud to be Africans. He said, A country is one of the most important things to any person. After that one should fear God. You should keep on the right track of avoiding sleeping with anyone because it would be the right recipe for
KAMPALA Boxing Club (KBC) has announced a compulsory health policy which will have all its boxers tested for HIV/AIDS before engaging in the ring. Club secretary Aman Asiimwe said that the policy was a move to ensure a risk free game of boxing at the club. KBC is also to spearhead formulation of Ugand
The health of children living with HIV/AIDS can improve greatly if they are fed well, given an opportunity to play, talked to and treated for common illnesses, the director Jjajja s Home, a day-care at the Mildmay Centre, has said. Agnes Kimara said the biggest problems that the children face in the communities include
Uganda still faces a big HIV/AIDS epidemic fight with 80,000 new infections per year despite the impressive reduction in prevalence rates from 20% to 6.5%. The British High Commissioner, Adam Wood, warned yesterday that there was no room for complacency. He, however, said Uganda was an acclaimed sub-Saharan success s
The First Lady, Janet Museveni, has asked the youth in Uganda to abstain from premarital sex. You do not need sex at your age. Wait until you are married. You can choose to fight AIDS by saying no and be able to stay alive, she told the quiet youth. She said abstinence would help them avoid the deadly HIV/AIDS and unwa
Despite being aware of AIDS, high-risk groups have not changed their sexual behaviours much, a study conducted by the Department of Population Studies, Makerere University has shown. The research, published in last month s issue of the Africa Health Sciences journal, showed that adolescents, barmaids, street children,
THE chairman of the Uganda Red Cross Society has been appointed on a four-man committee to distribute funds to volunteers and workers of the International Red Cross Committee living with HIV/AIDS. Tom Buruku (right) was appointed to the committee during a general assembly of the International Federation of the Red Cro
UGANDA has nearly two million orphans, according to the latest UNICEF report. The report, entitled Africa s Generation of Orphans, carried out in 46 sub-Saharan states, says 1,731,000 Ugandan children are orphans, of which 1,144,000 have lost their fathers, 902,000 their mothers and 315,000 both parents. It says 42% of
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