KAMPALA
When COVID-19 exposed the fragility of health systems worldwide, Uganda like many countries was forced to reckon with the gaps in its epidemic preparedness. Three years later, a mid-term evaluation workshop in Kampala suggests the country is now making measurable progress in closing those gaps, thanks to a partnership with South Korea.
On August 21, the Ministry of Health and the Korea Foundation for International Healthcare (KOFIH) convened more than 60 experts, policymakers and academics at the ONOMO Hotel Conference Centre to review the Korea–Uganda Infectious Disease Control Project. The initiative, launched in 2022, is designed to strengthen Uganda’s ability to prevent, detect and respond to outbreaks, with a focus on central and southern regions.
At the heart of the effort is the renovation of public health laboratories, the establishment of regional emergency operations centres (REOCs), and the reinforcement of surveillance systems. “We are not only building structures, but laying foundations for a resilient health system,” said Dr. Daniel Kyabayinze, Commissioner for Multisectoral Collaboration and Partnership at the Ministry of Health, who led the Ugandan delegation.
The workshop jointly organised by Korea’s Yeungnam University and Hanyang University was more than a technical evaluation. It was a moment of stocktaking, where Ugandan and Korean experts examined progress made, shared lessons from the field, and asked difficult questions about sustainability. Presentations explored accreditation pathways for laboratories, gaps in surveillance, and strategies to entrench community-level epidemic preparedness.
For KOFIH, which has invested in Uganda’s health systems for nearly a decade, the meeting reaffirmed a central principle: infrastructure matters, but so does knowledge exchange. “This collaborative effort underscores our shared vision of building resilient systems that can protect communities against future public health threats,” KOFIH said in a statement.
Uganda’s infectious disease burden ranging from cholera and typhoid to emerging viral outbreaks makes such investments urgent. Strengthening national and regional response systems is seen as critical not only for Uganda but for East Africa as a whole, where porous borders and mobile populations increase vulnerability to epidemics.
As the project enters its next phase, emphasis will shift to sustaining gains through stronger policy frameworks, long-term financing models, and deeper regional collaboration. The five-year initiative runs until 2026, but both governments made it clear that the work will extend far beyond the project’s lifetime.
Infectious disease control, participants agreed, is no longer the responsibility of health professionals alone. It demands political will, cross-sector partnerships and resilient communities. And as Uganda and Korea’s collaboration shows, it also thrives on solidarity that stretches across continents.
