Stakeholders want malaria funding made compulsory in national budget; is it feasible?

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Key health sector stakeholders are pushing for an amendment to the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) to make malaria a mandatory benchmark in approving national budgets.

The development would compel all Government ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) to allocate a fixed percentage toward the fight against the disease.

Peter Mbabazi, the board chairperson of the Malaria Youth Champions Uganda (MYCU), made this call on November 18, 2025, during a high-level engagement with the Uganda Parliamentary Forum on Malaria.

The meeting, which took place in Parliament’s Conference Hall A, was anchored on gender-responsive malaria and health services.

Mbabazi was also representing the Director of Public Health at the health ministry (MOH), Dr Daniel Kyabayinze, Dr Catherine Maiteki Sebuguzi and all team leaders of the National Malaria Elimination Division, who were meant to be present.

“The thinking is that there is a need for it to be updated and include malaria as a precondition for budget approval, and also allocate a percentage so that all MDAs can actually reflect on their budget that percentage. We already have a malaria prevention and treatment code given by the PSST (Ramathan Ggoobi) on the charter of accounts 000064," he implored.

"It reflects on all MDAs. So, there is already a pocket or a basket where you can allocate money, and it is already in the system. What is now a challenge, it now depends on who feels what to allocate money to that budget code and yet we have all agreed that malaria is devastating our communities..." Mbabazi added. 

Malaria burden

Uganda is among the world’s high-burden malaria countries. According to World Health Organisation (WHO) statistics, the country lost between 70,000 and 100,000 lives to malaria in 2023 alone.

With $500 million (equivalent to Sh1.79 trillion) lost annually in treatment expenses, lost productivity and strain on the healthcare system.

Funding freeze

His proposition comes ten months after the United States (US) President Donald Trump issued a stop order freezing foreign funding. A move that has since paralysed health services in several developing countries.

Something, Mbabazi believes should serve as a wake-up call to mobilise our own resources.

“Trump is saying America first. Shouldn’t it be Uganda first? Shouldn’t it be our People first?” he posed.

“Truth needs to be told. Nobody is going to give us money to eliminate malaria. That has never happened and is not going to happen. Those countries that have eliminated malaria have used their own money. So, Uganda cannot rely on donors to eliminate malaria. It is affecting our people, it is affecting us, that is our problem,” Mbabazi asserted.

However, for many MPs, including West Budama South’s Dr Emmanuel Otaala (NRM), the milestone remains little more than a pipedream.

“I know the Abuja declaration talked about allocating fifteen percent of our national budget to the health sector. That was close to thirty years ago. That has not been achieved to date. So, what makes you think that the Government can allocate money only for malaria?” he pointed out.

Health care funding

It is worth noting that in the 2024/5 financial year, Government invested sh721 billion in healthcare supplies, general and essential medicines under the National Medical Stores, according to this year’s budget speech, which was read by finance minister Matia Kasaija.

The figure included additional financing of sh100 billion for essential medicines, sh116.8 billion for Anti-retroviral (ARVs), sh2.9 billion for anti-malarial medicines, sh17.8 billion for immunisation supplies, sh52.3 billion for laboratory supplies and sh2.1 billion for anti-TB drugs.

During the year under review, documents show that Government undertook residual spraying in 13 districts, which protected the lives of 2.7 million people and 560,000 households against malaria. Additionally, authorities introduced the malaria vaccine into the Extended Programme on Immunisation, targeting children under five years of age.

To further improve the health of Ugandans, a total of sh5.87 trillion was allocated to the health sector in the ongoing fiscal year.

Towards priority interventions which include; functionalising health center fours (HC IV), strengthening primary healthcare and community health services, strengthening the National Ambulance and Emergency Referral System, among others.