Health Minister Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng backs Uganda Cancer Institute to secure a loan for its expansion and modern equipment.

12 December 2024

By, Isaac Senabulya

The Minister of Health, Dr. Ruth Aceng, has defended the need for the government’s proposal to borrow US$18.09 million (UGX65,923,578,000) from the African Development Fund to finance the expansion and equipping of the Uganda Cancer Institute, saying this will improve cancer care in Uganda and help reduce the workload Oncologists are grappling with.

Dr. Aceng made the remarks while appearing before Parliament’s National Economy Committee, noting that the project is part of the three East Africa's Centres of Excellence for Skills project in which Uganda was to lead in Oncology, while Tanzania and Kenya were to lead in Cardiology and mythology respectively, but Uganda’s project was hampered by the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, creating a need for additional resources.

Henry Musasizi, Minister of State for Finance, while justifying the need for additional resources, explained that the construction of the center was initially scheduled to take 24 months; however, due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the contractors cash flow challenges, the implementation of the civil works activities was delayed for 18 months. The civil works contract therefore stretched to over 42 months and prices of materials and labour subsequently increased.

“The demand for cancer care is growing and this coupled with inadequate infrastructure has incapacitated the Uganda Cancer Institute from providing effective service delivery to patients. The limited infrastructure at the Centre has resulted in congestion, more complications, more expensive alternatives, premature deaths, and increased referrals abroad. Currently, for example, the cumulative number of patients on the waiting list for nuclear medicines stands at over 500 adult patients. Expansion of treatment and care facilities is thus a priority for Government,” said Minister

Robert Migadde, the Deputy Chairperson of the National Economy Committee, stated, “Are we going to see an end to people going to other nations if we approve this loan? Because we have patients going to Aga Khan Hospital, now that we have East Africa with Kenya, Rwanda, are we going to see different patients coming here for the different services?”