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Use of COVID-19 ICT surveillance applications in Uganda: a case study of Kampala City, Wakiso and Mukono districts
No full textDifferent Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) health-based innovations such as cloud computing, web and mobile surveillance applications were used by proactive governments to fight COVID-19. Contact tracing mobile applications were used by more than 100 countries. However, the extent to which these surveillance applications have been used to track Covid-19 in Uganda is not clear. This study aimed to establish the use of COVID-19 surveillance applications in Uganda. This was a purely qualitative study. Health practitioners managing these surveillance applications were interviewed from Kampala City, Mukono and Wakiso districts of Uganda. The assessment of the COVID-19 surveillance applications underscores the relevance of health-based ICTS. The surveillance applications provided accurate, authoritative and timely data. However, there were false alerts as result of inaccurate data supplied by the applications. The study recommends increased facilitation of the surveillance officers, continuous training of surveillance teams and integration of the applications for the management of other non-communicable diseases
Religion, Disability, and Sustainable Development in Africa
No full textThis chapter talks about the intersection of disability and religion in the context of COVID-19 and sustainable development in Africa. Acknowledging the persons with disabilities are a vulnerable group with the SDGs framework. It further elaborate the intersectionality of religion, COVID-19 and disability
Legacy and emerging organic pollutants in indoor and outdoor environments in Africa: Contamination levels, health risks, and analytical techniques
No full textThe World Health Organisation reported that over 20 % of the global disease burden and deaths are caused by environmental factors such as air and dust pollution. Legacy organic pollutants (LOPs) and emerging organic pollutants (EOPs) are among the biggest contributors to this burden. Herein we reviewed literature published for the period 2000e2023 on selected LOPs and EOPs in indoor dust and outdoor air in Africa to understand the occurrence, associated human health risks and common analytical techniques used to identify and quantify these contaminants. The findings revealed generally lower contamination levels for most pollutants than that in most regions outside Africa except for PCBs in outdoor air and OCPs in indoor settled dust. Apart from a few studies for polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), most studies reported hazard index (HI) values less than 1 for outdoor air and indoor dust exposure, which suggested negligible non-carcinogenic risks in children and adults. Gas Chromatography and mass spectrometry were the most frequently used analytical techniques for both air and dust probably due to their sensitivity and selectivity in detecting chemical traces at the pg m3 and ng g 1 levels. Although the current contamination levels are generally low, their synergistic and cumulative effects may in the long run affect the environment and human health. There is also a paucity of data on most contaminants, especially for PCNs, and PFASs in both outdoor air and dust. Coordinated efforts are needed to limit the trade, importation, and disposal of products containing LOPs and EOPs in Africa. ©2025 The Authors. Publishing services by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of KeAi Communications Co. Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND licens
The politics of knowledge on Covid-19 indigenous medicine in Uganda
No full text1-21 p. ;Covid-19 was a health risk that threatened the health and well-being of people. The scale of Covid-19 demanded innovative solutions. In Africa, indigenous health solutions such as spiritual and indigenous herbal therapies were central to combating Covid-19. In Uganda, indigenous medicine captured the imagination of a nation struggling to secure vaccines and clinical treatments for Covid-19. This experienced contestations over the determination of the nature and type, ownership and protocols of indigenous medicine acceptable for Covid-19. Among the protocols was the subjection of Covid-19 indigenous medicine to formal approval by the National Drug Authority (NDA). This was contested as costly, un-African, and a deliberate move to undermine the power, authenticity, and efficacy of indigenous medicine. As such, Covid-19 indigenous medicine became a center of power of knowledge conflict. The question of whose knowledge matters in solving local health issues was evident. This chapter exposes the nature and implication of the politics of knowledge on Covid-19 indigenous medicine to the health and well-being of Ugandans. The chapter argues that persistent conflicts of knowledge on the power, authenticity, and efficacy of indigenous medicine in dealing with Covid-19 promoted health and well-being risks
The influence of a twelve weeks aerobic exercise regimen on neuroticism in HIV positive clients in Uganda
No full text130-141 p.Highly active antiretrovirals have led to a considerable drop in HIV-related morbidity and mortality and a large increase in the life expectancy of HIV positive individuals in Uganda. The likelihood of clinicians coming across people exhibiting neuroticism symptoms associated with the illness has been reported to be on the increase. As much as exercising has been established to have positive effects is alleviating such symptoms, it is noted that, 52% of the population do not follow an exercise regimen and the problem has persisted.
This study assessed the influence of aerobic exercise on neuroticism symptoms in HIV positive clients attending an ART clinic in Uganda. A quasi-experimental research design with 67 volunteers in each of the pre- and post-test control groups. The results reveal that at the pre-test stage, all the experimental group participants reported experiencing some form of neuroticism. However, after the aerobic exercises, 80.8% of the experimental study participants reported having been relieved of neuroticism symptoms. In this instance, the experimental group’s p-value was smaller than the alpha level (.05) since the test took a 95% threshold for significance. These results imply that aerobic exercises have a significant effect on reducing neuroticism in HIV positive clients on ART
Structural, chemical, and mechanical properties of concrete developed from a binder composite of sugarcane bagasse ash and Portland cement
No full text18 p. ;The East Africa Community (EAC) countries have immense sugarcane cane bagasse ash (SCBA) which remains unexploited as a supplementary-cementitious material (SCM). This study delved into using EAC SCBA as a pozzolan. SCBA investigated was collected from Kenya’s coastal area. Raw SCBA, processed SCBA, Portland cement (PC) and the developed concrete were characterised by various techniques to determine the surface morphology, chemical composition, structural properties and mineralogical composition. The raw SCBA was calcined at 600 °C then used to design the concrete mix. PC was replaced with SCBA from 0 to 30% in steps of 10%. The flexural and compressive strengths were determined in the hardened state after 28 days of concrete curing. The compressive and flexural strengths of the mix containing 20% SCBA were higher than the control mix by 9.65 and 6.51%, respectively. The microstructural properties of the developed concrete revealed dense particle distribution, indicating good micro/nanofiller effects of the interfacial transition zone (ITZ). The processed SCBA was found to meet class N and F of natural pozzolan as per ASTM C 618. This study suggests that the Kenya coastal SCBA can be used as a supplementary cementitious material
Evaluating the efficiency and economic savings levels among primary healthcare units in rukungiri district, Uganda: a non-parametric model
No full textIntroduction: The scarcity and shortage of resources in health systems in developing countries
continues to draw attention, tension and debate among stakeholders, and this calls for evaluation of
efficiency in healthcare markets.
Objectives: The purpose of the study is to analyse the efficiency and level of economic savings among
public health centre II facilities in Rukungiri District, Uganda. Two specific objectives guided the study:
estimating the technical and scale efficiency scores and the economic saving levels among the primary
healthcare facilities.
Methodology: A cross-sectional descriptive research design was used and secondary data containing
health inputs and outputs that was secured from the District Health Information System (DHIS-2) for
the financial year 2022/2023. A Constant Returns to Scale (CRS) output-oriented Data Envelopment
Analysis (DEA) technique was adopted to evaluate the level of technical, scale efficiency and slack
values for economic savings that are needed to make inefficient health units efficient.
Results: An average technical efficiency level of 43.7 percent was estimated implying that facilities
need to improve on resource utilization by 56.3 percent to become technically efficient. Scale
efficiency averaged 99.7 percent and this means that the facilities were scale efficient given their size.
Economic savings arising from input reductions and output augmentations were registered.
Conclusion: This study fills the research gap by estimating the technical and scale efficiency scores for
each facility as a decision making unit in the district. It provides a novel and detailed understanding of
how much economic savings would be made if technically inefficient facilities avoid wastage of input
resources to attain efficiency. It also identifies the benchmark facilities from which inefficient ones
need to emulate to become efficient
An Assessment of groundwater available potential for migrants and displaced people using GIS and remote sensing techniques a case of West Nile, Uganda
No full text21 p.Over recent years, many people have left their homes due to political persecution, conflicts, poverty, human right violations, climate-related disasters, and diseases. These people usually hosted by developing countries that still survive on limited budgets and often vulnerable to disasters and economic crises. It should be noted that migrants and displaced people are settled in camps where access to basic needs like water remains uncertain due to poor rapid assessments of water available potential. The study used GIS and remote sensing techniques to assess groundwater available potential in West Nile, Uganda, a known refugee host region having 12 districts (i.e., Maracha, Pakwach, Zombo, Yumbe, Adjumani, Nebbi, Koboko, Madi-Okollo, Obongi, Terego, Moyo, and Arua) with 6 camps (i.e., Rhino, Palorinya, Lobule, Imvepi, Bidi bidi, and Adjumani). The methodology involved analyzing seven groundwater occurrence control factors (e.g., rainfall, geology, land use, soil, DEM) using AHP approach and ArcMap to generate a groundwater available potential map which was then classified into three classes (i.e., poor, fair, and good). Areas with poor groundwater potential accounted for 4.9%, fair 88.3%, and 6.8% as good. Districts of Adjumani, Madi-Okollo, Obongi, and Moyo had good groundwater potential zones, whereas Pakwach and Nebbi had poor groundwater potential. Camps (i.e., Rhino and Polarinya) had relatively good groundwater potential zones while Lobulo and Bidi-bidi had poor potential. Therefore, the study’s findings can act as preliminary reference in rapid assessment of new water access points in West Nile settlement camps and other areas by humanitarian organizations
Technology adoption and agricultural productivity a study of Mubuku & Rwimi prisons farms in western Uganda.
No full textBackground: This study examined the impact of technology adoption on agricultural productivity at Uganda's prisonfarms, focusing on Mubuku and Rwimi Prison Farms. The Uganda Prisons Service (UPS) integrates agricultural activities
into the rehabilitation of inmates, using these farms to test new agricultural techniques and technologies. The study aims toidentify adopted technologies, assess productivity, and explore barriers to their implementation.
Methdology: A descriptive and cross-sectional research design was used, incorporating both quantitative and qualitativemethods. The sample consisted of 181 participants selected from a target population of 340, including Prison FarmManagers and inmates involved in farming. Data was collected via questionnaires, interviews, and document reviews, andanalyzed using SPSS after classification and coding.
Results: Findings revealed that maize was the dominant crop, with 80% of respondents growing it, while only 20%cultivated beans. Livestock farming was less common (27%), with chicken farming being the most widespread. Technological adoption, including automated irrigation, renewable energy (solar panels), agricultural machinery, andintegrated pest management, contributed to significant productivity increases. Notable yield improvements includeda700% increase for cowpeas and 500% for rice.
Conclusion: However, barriers to technology adoption included insufficient funding, high technology costs, limitedtraining, poor infrastructure, and resistance to change. The study concluded that while technology adoption improvedproductivity, challenges like inadequate funding and infrastructure hinder broader implementation.
Recommendation: Increasing government funding, offering continuous training for prison staff and inmates, improvinginfrastructure, addressing resistance to change, and fostering partnerships with technology providers and researchinstitutions to maximize the potential of these technological innovations and enhance farm sustainability
A geospatial platform for visualizing underground utilities in growing urban centers
No full text123-138 p. : maps.Urban development in rapidly expanding cities, especially in developing countries, is often hindered by limited access to accurate and current information on underground infrastructure. This paper introduces a web-based dashboard developed to map and visualize subsurface utilities in Kampala, Uganda. To support the development of this system, a field survey was conducted to collect baseline data on existing underground assets, validate geospatial records, and assess on-the-ground conditions. Designed to address critical data gaps, the dashboard integrates this field-verified information with open-source web technologies and multilingual support, offering an interactive and accessible platform for planners, engineers, and city officials. By enabling non-intrusive identification and exploration of underground assets, the dashboard supports safer construction practices, reduces the risk of accidental utility damage, and improves coordination among stakeholders. Ultimately, this solution contributes to more efficient urban planning and lays the foundation for Kampala's transition toward sustainable smart city development