Kampala – Makerere College Faculty of Public Neatly being (MakSPH) marked its 70th anniversary with a celebratory occasion in Kampala, bringing together dignitaries including Boom Minister for Foremost Neatly being Care Hon. Margaret Muhanga, Makerere College Vice Chancellor Professor Barnabas Nawangwe, MakSPH Dean Professor Rhoda Wanyenze, and Ministry of Neatly being Officials. The World Neatly being Group (WHO) Uganda reaffirmed its dedication to supporting MakSPH’s work in advancing public successfully being.
Hon. Muhanga applauded MakSPH’s transition to face-alone online page within Makerere College, which is anticipated to spice up its affect. She highlighted the faculty’s vital feature in epidemic response, successfully being techniques strengthening, and policy construction. “MakSPH has been pivotal in documenting development in the direction of eradicating ailments admire HIV and TB,” she remarked.
Since its inception in 1954, MakSPH has developed accurate into a main institution in public successfully being training and overview in Africa. Professor Nawangwe praised the faculty for contributing with regards to 50% of Makerere College’s overview output and shaping Uganda’s successfully being insurance policies.
Professor Wanyenze highlighted the faculty’s milestones, from groundbreaking overview initiatives to impactful community engagements. She emphasised the need for persisted innovation to cope with emerging challenges reminiscent of non-communicable ailments and climate exchange.
WHO Uganda Nation Representative, Dr Charles Njuguna, lauded the longstanding collaboration with MakSPH. All the arrangement by arrangement of the last five years, this partnership has spearheaded with regards to 50 projects, including the Uganda Non-Communicable Ailments Grief Components STEPS Look and the National Immunization Formulation. “MakSPH exemplifies how academia and global organizations can work together to resolve global successfully being challenges,” he remarked.
Dr Njuguna impressed MakSPH to pursue online page as a WHO Participating Heart, which can well deal strengthen its global have an effect on. Globally, WHO Participating Centers play a pivotal feature in advancing illness prevention and successfully being techniques overview. With most attention-grabbing 27 such products and companies in Africa, setting up one in Uganda would ticket a significant milestone.
Graduates from MakSPH are amongst WHO team of workers, contributing deal to the organization’s work in varied technical areas, every within the sector and at the office, in some unspecified time in the future of moderately a lot of clusters within the country office and the three ranges of the organization. Their efforts were instrumental in WHO’s mission to promote successfully being, protect the realm protected and lend a hand the inclined.
Mackline Asiimwe, a field epidemiologist deployed by WHO to combat mpox outbreaks in Uganda’s Nakasongola and Pallisa districts, credit MakSPH’s rigorous working in the direction of and various competencies in epidemiology and overview for her success.
After incomes a Master’s in Neatly being Products and companies and Compare, Asiimwe carried out a WHO-supported, US Authorities-funded fellowship in field epidemiology, equipping her to excel in public successfully being. “The abilities I gained at MakSPH allow me to acknowledge successfully to public successfully being emergencies,” she famed.
The occasion also highlighted the sharp studies of MakSPH alumni who absorb excelled of their training and careers, embodying the faculty’s mission to originate transformational leaders and foster excellence in innovation.
Amongst them was once Ruth Mubeezi, whose accelerate took her from being a pupil at MakSPH to serving as a college member in Public Neatly being. Reflecting on her expertise, she said, “MakSPH instilled in me a deep dedication to bettering successfully being outcomes, with a focal point on advancing environmental successfully being.”
Sam Ongom, currently a Monitoring, Overview, and Compare Advisor at Jhpiego Uganda, also credited the faculty for shaping his direction to community affect. “I owe a sizable deal to my mentor, Assoc. Prof. Peter Waiswa, whose guidance emphasised the associated price of pursuing an MPH in a all accurate now evolving world,” he shared.
The celebrations concluded with a name to movement for persisted and reinforced partnerships and innovation. “The following 70 years retain even elevated promise as we strive to shape a more wholesome, more equitable future for Uganda and beyond,” said Professor Wanyenze.
This momentous occasion of celebrating 70 years was once also inclined to officially originate MaKSPH’s strategic thought for the next five years (2025-2030) below the theme, “Shaping Neatly being, Empowering the Future”.
As MakSPH celebrates 70 years, its leadership in overview and working in the direction of remains serious in addressing Uganda’s successfully being challenges. With WHO’s make stronger, this collaboration continues to force ability building, evidence-based mostly policymaking, and community successfully being enhancements, and laying a tough foundation for sustainable public successfully being interventions.
