WHO UGANDA NEWS BULLETIN

Volume 2 Issue 36: October 2014

UGANDA LAUNCHES THE NATIONAL MALE INVOLMENT STRATEGY AND GUIDELINES

Participants at the National Launch for Male Involvement

Entebbe, 11th November 2014:- The Minister of State

for Health in Charge of General Duties Hon. Elioda
Tumwesigye has urged men to play their part in maternal
health care. This he said at the launch of the National
Male Involvement Strategy and Guidelines at LAICO
Lake Victoria Hotel, Entebbe.

Left to Right: Minister of State for Health in charge of General

Duties Dr. Elioda Tumwesigye and the WHO Country Rep. Dr. Alemu
Wondimagegnehu

In a WHO report, it was noted that, the Cairo Conference

on Population and Development (1994) urged that special
efforts should be made to emphasize mens shared
responsibility and promote their active involvement in
responsible parenthood, sexual and reproductive
including family planning, prevention of sexually
transmitted diseases including HIV/AIDS, prevention of
Hon. Tumwesigye said that mens knowledge about
unwanted and high-risk pregnancies with special
danger-signs of pregnancy and what to do with them is
very relevant to their lifesaving role during pregnancy
emphasis being put on prevention of violence against
and childbirth. Emphasize involvement of men to be part women and children.
of everything; healthy feeding, good sanitation,
immunization, family planning and fighting malaria and It was noted that their was a gap in the knowledge of
HIV/AIDS, he said.
reproductive health issues as they relate to men.
The Director General of Health Services Dr. Ruth
Achieng said that the issue of male participation has a
cultural background that affects uptake and utilization of
health services in Uganda. She said that the role of
promoting positive health outcomes in households and
communities is very crucial and must be addressed at all
levels.

A Ministry of Health Report indicates that a crosssectional survey of 388 men aged 18 years or more, whose
spouses were attending antenatal care at Mbale Regional
Referral Hospital, was conducted in Mbale district,
Eastern Uganda. The respondents had a median age of
32 years. The survey indicated that there was a low male
involvement index and only 5% of men accompanied their
spouses to the antenatal clinic. Men who had attained
Dr. Achieng said that health staff are adopting innovative secondary education were more likely to have a high male
involvement index than those who had primary or no
approaches to have couples come for Anti-Natal Care
formal education. The respondents who had fear of
together.
disclosure of their HIV sero-status results to their
spouses, were less likely to have a high male involvement
The WHO Country Representative Dr. Alemu
index. Barriers to male involvement were related to both
Wondimagegnehu noted that there is a growing number
of programs engaging men in reproductive health now in the poor health system, to socio-economic factors and to
Uganda and this reflects exciting changes in the field. He cultural beliefs.
said that the Male involvement initiative being led by
The workshop brought together CSOs, the Ministry of
the Ministry of Health is a key component of the Joint
Health, WHO and the media.
Program on Population (JPP).
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For more information please contact Benjamin Sensasi, Health Promotion Adviser, WHO Country Office Tel 256-414-335500 Email: sensasIb@.who.int