Help Ugandans Obtain Vital Health Services

Anna Ayo sounded the alarm on embezzled public funds intended to support the rehabilitation of the Apwori Health Center through a report made to the Citizen Action Platform (CAP). Anna is one of an estimated 20,000 people the Health Center is meant to serve, but without the missing funds, the necessary repairs could not take place. Following Anna’s report, a trained volunteer corruption monitor visited the health center and heard the frustrations of additional patients and health center staff. As a result, The Apac Anti Corruption Coalition (TAACC) organized a public accountability forum, gathering 286 citizens, government officials and media outlets, including three local radio stations and a national newspaper, the Daily Monitor.

The public forum emboldened others to voice their grievances, like rampant staff absenteeism (in large part due to the poor condition of the facility), rude behavior towards patients, illegal extortion for basic services, inadequate drugs and land disputes with the neighboring community.

Under the watchful eye of the media, government officials and corruption monitors resolved several issues during the public meeting. Health center administrators vowed to begin using an arrival and departure book to record staff attendance; facility boundaries were clearly marked to help qualm land disputes; and 192,000 of the 200,000 Ugandan Shillings stolen by the former Vice-Chair of the Health Unit Management Committee were recovered and allocated for their intended use. Anna’s report and the forum also sparked the introduction of longer-term improvements, including new accounting measures to track public funds. Since the forum, an additional 600,000 Shillings misappropriated by Local Councilors has been identified and recovered.

As construction finally begins at the Apwori Health Center, it is clear that conditions are improving at the facility. While many challenges remain in Apwori, a new sense of agency has taken root throughout the community, especially for Anna, who sparked the tiny revolution through a simple report.

Apwori is an example of just one of the approximately 650 villages served by the CAP program in Northern Uganda. Over the past 4 years, we’ve seen citizen reports result in new health facilities, greater staff retention, recovered funds and medicines, and the replacement of dysfunctional medical equipment. Your donation through Global Giving, has enabled us to continue the CAP program in 2018, allowing more communities to experience these changes. Thank you!

But we’re not there yet. We’re only halfway to our project fundraising goal and there is still so much more work to be done for people in need of health care throughout Uganda. Local communities are willing and able to do the hard work needed to secure their basic rights and keep local government accountable. Your gift unlocks local NGO's ability to organize volunteer monitors, facilitate public forums, and raise awareness.

Please take a moment to share with a friend the news of the brave men and women, like Anna, standing up to corruption and maltreatment in their communities.