UCMB receives two vehicles worth Sh600m to reduce maternal mortality in West Nile

By Francis Jjunju

3^rd Nov 2022

The Catholic Church in Uganda through the Uganda Catholic Medical Bureau –UCMB has received two brand new land cruiser vehicles to support the implementation of community health networks projects dubbed ACHAP Afya in the West Nile districts of Arua and Nebbi.

The ACHAP Afya project is overseen by the Uganda Catholic Medical Bureau –UCMB in partnership with ACHPA, an advocacy and network platform of over 40 Christian Health Associations –CHAs and Church Health Networks in Sub- Saharan Africa with support from the United States Agency for International Development –USAID.

The Project is being implemented to support the Government’s development efforts of reducing key community drivers of child and maternal morbidity and mortality in high burden regions of Uganda.

During the handover ceremony at the Uganda Catholic Secretariat Nsambya, where the UCMB Assistant Executive Secretary Dr. Ronald Kasyaba received the vehicles, the ACHAP Deputy Chief of Party Dr. Alex Muhereza noted that the vehicles valued at 600 million shillings will facilitate work to save mother in the communities.

The Regional Project officer ACHAP AFYA in West Nile, Janet Komagum Opota noted that they are working through community structures to generate demand for quality health services at the community level to ensure safety of mothers and their children before, at and after birth.

Komagum said that their services fall under the first, fourth and fifth millennium development goals that are eradicating extreme poverty, reducing child mortality and improving maternal health as well as the Country’s National Development Plan 2040.

The three year project has been running for the last two years in the districts of Nebbi and Arua where at least 336 deaths per 100,000 live births are recorded due to maternal mortality, meaning 16 mothers die every day due to pregnancy related complications.