Uganda has made commendable progress in terms of rolling out AntiRetroviral Therapy (ART), expanding coverage from 44% in 2003 to 54% in 2009 (Table 10). As such, the country is on track to achieve the 2012 target of 80% coverage. Currently, about 200,000 of the 373,000 people who need ART have access to it (UNGASS 2010). These gains, though,
are fragile, as the number of people who need ART grows each year and future financing to expand ART coverage is uncertain. In addition, newly released international guidelines recommend the much earlier initiation of ART; if adopted as government policy, this recommendation would significantly increase the number of people who need ART.
Table 11: Target 6.C Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the incidence of malaria and other major diseases STATUS OF PROGRESS: SLOW 2003
2006
2007
2008
2010
2015
6.5 Reported cases of malaria (per 10,000)
49
36
42
37
n/a
n/a
6.6 Proportion of children under 5 sleeping under insecticide-treated bed nets
8%
10%
n/a
33%*
50%
n/a
6.7 Proportion of children under 5 with fever who are treated with appropriate anti-malarial drugs
n/a
61%
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
6.8 Incidence, prevalence and death rates associated with tuberculosis: Incidence rate/100,000 Prevalence rate/100,000 Death rate/100,000
411 652 96
355 561 84
330 426 93
310 350 110
n/a n/a n/a
103 35
6.9 Proportion of tuberculosis cases detected and cured under directly observed treatment short course Treatment success rate New smear positive case detection rate
69% 53%
70% 50%
75% 50%
80% 57%
n/a n/a
85% 70%
Sources: UBOS (2003); UHDS (2005/2006); Malaria Prevalence Survey (2009); National Tuberculosis and Leprosy Programme database. Notes: * Year is 2009.
Malaria is responsible for more illness and death than any other single disease in Uganda. People with low immunity, such as pregnant women, young children and people living with HIV/AIDS, are particularly vulnerable to morbidity and mortality associated with malaria. But all people living in Uganda are at risk of being infected with malaria parasites and suffering from resulting illness and potential fatality.12 In most parts of Uganda, temperature and rainfall are sufficient to allow a stable, yearround (perennial) malaria transmission at high levels with relatively little seasonal variability. Only in the high altitude areas of the southwest, west and east is malaria transmission generally low. However, with the increasing threat from climate change, extension of malaria to these highlands could pose a serious challenge. While tremendous progress has been made in the fight against malaria through the improvement of health system performance and increased public knowledge about malaria, increasing resistance to commonly used treatments remains a serious challenge to malaria control
12) http://www.health.go.ug/mcp/index2.html
Figure 32
REPORTED CASES OF MALARIA
150.000
90
100.000
60
50.000
30
0
0 1990
1995 Reported cases
2000
2005
2010
Per 10,000 in the population
Sources: MOH annual health sector performance reports; UDHS (2005/2006); Malaria Prevalence Survey (2009).
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