ENVIRONMENT HEALTH AND HEALTH POLICY SITUATION IN UGANDA

Jacob Waiswa
Situation Health Analyst
Dishma-Inc.
P.O. Box 8885,
Kampala-Uganda
Tel. +256392614655/+256752542504
dishma.imhs@gmail.com
www.situationhealthanalysis.blogspot.com


“Environment can determine yr level of health, and climate is part of the environmental factors. Of course, the essence of health policy is to create better health.” Simon Nantamu (PhD), Global Health, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland.

Environment health continues to elude Uganda due to poor drainage systems and ineffective environmental laws while the health policies alienates Ugandans due to lack of medical personnel, lack of health information for preventive health; and poor health infrastructure –characterized by dire lack of medical equipments.

It is thus important to examine the levels of environment health and health policy situation in Uganda; assess the cultural health environments in which Ugandans live; the spiritual health environments; and the relationship between health policies and environment policy.

While many Ugandans love their traditional systems or cultures and cherish them, some have proved dangerous to peoples lives. 2010 in Uganda was a year of child sacrifices and the grave, well publicized female genital mutilation.

Such are reflected in figures: 34% (who said yes) to a fact that cultures were harmless; 33% who said no to the contrary, 28% (who said sometimes to potential harm from cultures); and 5% (who said neither harmful nor harmless).

Cultures in Uganda have for centuries lived in harmony with nature from they derived medicine, firewood, and religions manifested in clan and spiritual names. However, with increased population and modernization, much of the natural resources have been invaded and destroyed.

As such, the once respected nature (god) lost his dignity from men, now at a level of 50% (who said yes) on positive response of cultures towards the environment; 21% (who said no to that); 26% (who said sometimes culture contributed to environment protection); and 3% (who did not know whether or not it contributed to environment protection).

There is a significant relationship between culture and conservation. The regular harvesting of bamboo shoots on Mount Elgon, sought by local residents is favorable to the ecology. But man’s rules and regulations often undermine this link and tilt the balanced and complimentary relationship between nature, conservation and spiritual inspiration –leading to their endangerment by the so-called modern economy and modern habits.

“As humans get lost in what makes them be below the most stupid animal those, who are armed with skills to help them become well acquainted with their issues and try to help them rise above that animal.” Fred Charles Oweyegha-Afunaduula, National Association of Professional Environmentalists (NAPE), Kampala, Uganda.

The same is the case with spirituality –which over years has undergone degeneration and erosion due to western Christian movements and their contact with Africa. Despite the creation story emphasis of man’s stewardship over the entire creation, greed, arrogance and pride –instead characterizes the relationship.

That affects the spiritual significance to the natural environment as was marked by 50% (of Ugandans who said yes) to spirituality’s positive significance to environment protection, 23% (who said no to the statement), 25% who said sometimes it was significant to the environment; and 3% said did not know whether it was significant to the environment or not. Most religious today focus on economic gains, rather than environment issues and life sustainability as their focus too is heaven, not earth.

The Ugandan experience of worship especially among Christians shows most of them making fortune at the expense unsuspecting followers –using written scriptures as opium to extort, cheat and exploit church goers.

With 27% (yes) to show their concern towards a health environment, 34% said no, 39% said sometimes they showed concern, and 1% said did not know whether there was a need to show concern or not. The concern towards a clean and health environment in Uganda was very low as per 2010 –a situation, which, without doubt, limits sustainability of life systems

In Uganda government was reluctant to take on issues of encroachment seriously and insensitive of the effects on the environment. It is little wonder that the landslides in Bududa, Mbale killed 300 people for government to deal with the encroachment problems later. It did so by resettling inhabitants in Bunyoro. The resettlement was done without critical analysis of the cause of such environmental refugee crisis within the country.

There was a negative correlations between health policies and environment health showed by P=0.259 > 0.01 level (2-tailed). There is, thus, very little that health policies can do to foster environment health in Uganda.

In the first case, the health sector itself is sick –characterized by drug theft, negligence, low professionalism, poor health infrastructure, defects in administration, lack of priority spending, and poor funding.

Health policies are not effectively serving their intentions as showed by 27% Ugandans who said yes to it, 33% said no, 40% said sometimes they were effective, and 1% said did not know whether they were effective or not. There is gross lack of health infrastructure –where they are much needed (rural areas).

They are very poor and ill-equipped; lack medical personnel and equipment, and roads are inaccessible. Above all, people continue to die of preventable circumstances as maternal deaths, malaria, diarrhea etc.

In conclusion, there is limited grasp and practice of environment health issues –which continue to put the lives of Ugandans in great danger and make predictability of epidemics easy and worrying.

Besides the health policies have not been good enough to protect nationals against such eventualities –through community empowerment programs, interdisciplinary health education in schools and tertiary institutions, erection of functional and equipped health posts; greater and culture and religious involvement in health dispensations as family planning and health education.

There was a very low positive correlations between health policies and environment health showed by P=0.259 > 0.001 level (2-tailed) –which meant that health policies can do very little to help achieve environmental health. There is thus a need to make them functional if policy makers are to be sensible enough or relevant to the people they serve.