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KAMPALA - The Minister of Health, Dr Jane Ruth Aceng, has asked President Yoweri Museveni to avail finances to the health sector in order to improve health service delivery in the Country.

Dr Aceng made the call Tuesday during the second Association of Surgeons of Uganda (Asou) landscape exhibition held at Kololo Independence Grounds.

“We need to invest more but we do not have money, we need to prioritise health, Our guest of honour who represented President Museveni told him that we need money in cash not in papers but in cash. When you make the population healthy, they will never bother you,” Dr Aceng said.

Dr Aceng who was speaking to surgeons said that she has travelled but she has never seen a country that offers health services for free except in Uganda, so the Government needs to pay for it.

“We cannot keep on talking about free services, somebody should pay for it because there are so many people who need the services,” Dr Aceng said.

During the exhibition, new technologies used in theaters, Intensive Care Units were shown and it was clear that Uganda is steadily taking away the need to refer patients abroad and turning the tide to attract patients from beyond Ugandan borders.

Surgeons in Uganda used the event and asked the government to increase funding and investment in emerging specialized areas of transplant surgery and also expedite the establishment of the National Health Insurance Scheme.

“Government should increase the funding of the national health budget from the current 8.9% to at least over 12%. One sure way of closing this funding gap is by setting up the National Health Insurance scheme because a healthy population is a productive and wealthy population,” Prof Assimwe said.

Prof Assimwe thanked President Museveni and the Government of Uganda for creating a conducive environment that has attracted private investors to set up hospitals especially in Kampala that employ specialists to provide surgical care.

“These hospitals have invested in technologies in diagnostics and intervention that match the specialists in the Country. We want to thank your excellence for the robust revamp of education in the country at all levels, which has lifted the literacy rate of Ugandans to the current 80.6% (2022) up from 56.1%(1991), a literate population by default improves their health seeking behavior and a healthier population,” Prof Assimwe said.

He also requested the President for a contribution of at least sh1 billion to enable them to achieve personal financial liberation.