New partnership between the Uganda Ministry of Health, SCIFoundation and Arup set to improve health system resilience in Uganda

So far, within the district of Jinja, three COVID-19 cases have been identified and successfully isolated and treated. Whilst Uganda (and more widely Africa) may have been spared the worst of the pandemic so far, it is now widely acknowledged that this is unlikely to remain the case for much longer.

The pilot project will provide an innovative approach to data collection with the potential to transform the understanding of disease response allowing for quick decision making and the deployment of resources for effective and equitable disease preventionand response to disease outbreaks.

Under the partnership, SCI Foundation will be working in collaboration with the Uganda Ministry of Health (MoH) represented by Baayenda Gilbert, National Trachoma Programme Coordinator and Jinja Province COVID-19 Response Coordinator) and Arup to apply its digital capabilities to underpin Jinja’s COVID-19 response strategy.

This partnership will build on work being undertaken with SCIF and the Uganda MoH to improve intersectoral coordination for disease control.  Arup will partner in this project to provide digital skills and expertise, which will innovate the way in which data are brought together and analysed.

The Jinja district has previously handled Marburg and Crimean-Congo Haemorrhagic Fever (CCHF) outbreaks and the capacity for risk mapping and data visualisation was identified as an asset that would have undoubtedly been of benefit to develop and apply in these situations.

The project will provide a positive legacy that will support health system preparedness and resilience beyond COVID-19, to any future public health threats and within the field of neglected tropical disease (NTD) prevention.