Social Issue

Uganda has high maternal and infant mortality rates. In Wakiso district, maternal mortality is 450/100,000, double the global average (211/100,000). Infant mortality is also high at 34/1,000, with 46% in the neonatal stage. Strengthening maternal and child health services can prevent these deaths.

Our Response

Nurture Africa (NA) is an NGO in Uganda and Ireland that provides health, educational, and nutritional services to poor families to promote their self-reliance. Its health center in Wakiso, accredited by the Ministry of Health since 2011, focuses on maternal and child health.

Netri´s donation will partly finance the construction of a maternal operating theatre and training rooms for health workers. The operating theatre is expected to perform 700 cesarean sections and 300 minor surgeries annually. The goal is for the health centres in the region to refer complicated delivery cases to Nurture Africa to reduce the distance required to travel to more distant hospitals to give birth. As part of this project, Nurture Africa will run training programs to improve the competency levels of 38 health workers related to resuscitation, delivery complications, drug administration, and infection control.

Expected Social Impact

This is a project aimed at reducing maternal and infant mortality rates in central Uganda. The target population groups are vulnerable women living in Nansana municipality and the villages of Kasengejje, Mende and Masulita in Mubende district.

The expected impact is as follows:

– 20% improvement in the competence of trained health workers in relation to resuscitation, drug administration and infection control.

– 2% improvement in the health of children under 5 years of age compared to the baseline level.

– 2% reduction in neonatal and maternal mortality in selected health centers.