|
|
Uganda: USAID to Boost Private Sector Health Status
 |
 |
|||||||||
|
||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||
|
||||||||||
The Monitor (Kampala)
7 May 2008
Posted to the web 7 May 2008
Kampala
Employees in the Private sector will spend less or nothing on medical bills in the country after the release of a $9 million (about Shs15b) boost through a United States Agency for International Development (Usaid) funded programme.
The development was recently announced at the launch of Health Initiatives for the Private Sector (HIPS) at the Uganda Manufacturers Hall- Lugogo.
Usaid Mission Director in Uganda, Ms Ellis Margot said the programme will be coordinated by Emerging Markets Group, an international development consulting firm.
"The programme which will initially cover all companies, will mainly focus on the decreasing the burden of diseases among employees, their families and the neighbours in the immediate reach," Ms Margot said.
Officiating at the national launch on April 22, Ms Margot emphasised the need for companies to implement comprehensive workplace health programmes that maximize the accessibility of HIV/Aids, TB, malaria prevention, care and treatment services, Reproductive Health (RH) and Family planning.
"The key to the success and sustainability of this programme rests with the Uganda business community and employer association, HIPS is working with the Uganda Manufacturers Association (UMA) and the Federation of Uganda Employers (FUE) to assist companies in designing and implementing health work place programmes," Ms Margot said.
Ms Margot added that any company plan without the two aspects of TB and HIV/Aids should look at itself as unfortunate.
She encouraged companies that are not yet working with Usaid to open up business with the agency to explore more as it is a win -win partnership that could see your sector improve with developmental objectives.
Chief of Party for HIPS project Barbara Addy said by extending health services and improving their quality, companies will be able to profit from a healthier and more productive workforce.
"Employees, their families and surrounding communities will have access to high quality health services extended to them," Ms Addy said.
She also said the project would be implemented for three years and that support to the companies would be provided in a phased approach after a meager registration fee.
|
HIPS, wchich is in its first year of operation seeks, to reach more than 200,000 Ugandans with prevention and treatment messages on HIV/Aids, Malaria and Reproductive Health.
HIPS is already in partnership with more than 50 Ugandan companies.
Some of the large companies that are working with HIPS include; James Fin lays Tea, Nile Breweries, Roofings Ltd, Royal VanZanten flowers and Tullow oil.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Copyright © 2008 The Monitor. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections -- or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Make allAfrica.com your home page | RSS Feed | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Top | Site Guide | Who We Are | Advertising | Search | Subscribe | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Questions or Comments? Contact us. Read our Privacy Statement. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
