EASTERN

The implementation of the Breaking Barriers to Access (BBA) to family planning and sexual reproductive health rights (SRHR) programme has averted a total of 58,459 unintended pregnancies among the teenagers in Butaleja district.

The three BBA programmes implemented by the Reproductive Health Uganda (RHU), through financial support from Erik and Edith Bergstrom Foundation, is intended to reach out to young people through health system strengthening, creating awareness, and providing cervical cancer screening and family planning services.

Launched in April 2021 and implemented up to March 2023, the project has in the last year equally managed to avert 13,133 unsafe abortions among teenagers and 86 maternal deaths and it intended to reach out to 82,101 women and 500 men.

Bukedi sub-region, where Butaleja falls, has the highest fertility rate and teenage pregnancy levels, far above the national average.

A similar programme is being implemented in Tororo and Busia districts.

Jackson Chekweko, the RHU executive director, said they were forced to implement the programme in Butaleja after it was established that the district had the highest fertility rate with the youngest grandmother being 26 years.

Chekweko said the project has offered an integrated package of services with a number of men voluntarily adopting vasectomy while some mothers have embraced permanent family planning after sensitisation.

He asked the leaders to intensify health education among the community, in order to change their mindset.

Chekweko made the remarks during the second BBA project performance review meeting attended by district officials, health professionals and village health team members. The meeting was held recently at City resort hotel in Butaleja district.

During the meeting, the district received an assortment of medical equipment donated under the project to strengthen the capacity of the medical health facilities offering the services.

The equipment included delivery beds, eight autoclaves, gas cylinders, B.P machines, weighing scales, IUD kits, BTL sets, jik and surgical gloves.

The project co-ordinator, Dr Betty Isiko, said they have built the capacity of the medical personnel in effectively handling the patients and counselling services.

She added that they are majorly targeting couples to avoid mistrust and violence among them.

The acting district health officer, Stephen Akwoyo, thanked RHU for their intervention, saying cases of teenage pregnancies had drastically reduced.

The deputy RDC, Rachel Nkoko, cautioned men against looking at having many children as a source of pride.

Nkoko appealed to health workers and other leaders to sensitise secondary school students to reduce cases of school girls dropping out of school because of pregnancy.

Yunus Hamira, the district speaker, said as a matter of urgency, his district chairperson plus four other councillors have become exemplary by going for vasectomy.

He called upon the project implementers to target people with large families.