Global Week of Action for Child Health: 1st to 8th May 2014

School children in Australia mobilise for the Global Week of Action

By: Andrew Hassett, Director of Global Campaigns; World Vision International

When Child Health Now was first launched back in 2009, only a handful of countries took part. Today, five years later, we have seen over 45 adopt it, run it and change the lives of children through it.

During 2012 we reached and positively impacted more than 35 million children, since October 2010 we have contributed to the change of 131 national and global policies and through our mobilisations, more than 2.5 million people have stood together in solidarity for child health. And in this time, the number of under-five preventable deaths has dropped from 9.2 million to 6.6 million.

Together we are making a difference to preventable deaths!

This week, with the start of World Vision’s second Global Week of Action for Child Health Now, we are expecting to see activity taking place in more than 65 countries continuing the work and the vision of the campaign.

Lack of data means millions of children die unseen and invisible, new report finds

New World Vision report challenges leaders to make every child count

Wednesday, 30 April – Children are dying unseen, uncounted and invisible to the health services that could save their lives, a new report released today finds. Uncounted and Unreached, published by international aid, development and advocacy organisation World Vision, details how countries and world leaders are failing to properly track vital data about children and their health.

Ten more districts get Pneumonia vaccine

Story by Taddeo Bwambale from Newvision news paper

publish date : 12th – March-2014

TEN more districts have started receiving pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) rolled in January to prevent pneumonia among children below the age of five.
Distribution of the PCV vaccine started on January 14 in 94 out 112 districts.
The Director General of Health Services, Dr Jane Ruth Aceng on Wednesday disclosed that 10 out of the 18 remaining districts had satisfied requirements for receiving the vaccines.

Districts blamed in failed pay for medics

By Raymond Baguma New Vision News  Paper

Districts have been cited for failing to submit relevant documentation under the integrated payroll system, which has affected payment of health workers’ salaries.Dr. Diana Atwine the director of the Medicine and Health Services Delivery Monitoring Unit (MHSDMU) was on Monday addressing journalists at Media Centre.She was responding to a statement made recently by the shadow health minister Dr. Lulume Bayiga that health workers have gone months without pay.

Archbishop Lwanga opens health centre in Mpigi

This story was written by Juliet Lukwago in the New Vision Newspaper

This picture of a mother and their son was taken in rural Uganda. Photo by Davinah Nabirye

Residents of Kitekyusa, Bukemba, Kitigi, and other areas along Masaka road in Mpigi district are to benefit from a new community health centre set up by two Americans, Bob Maher and Dave Kimbell. The centre was officially opened by

UN Acknowledges World Vision Uganda’s Role in Strengthening Accountability for the Improved Health of Women and Children

The 2012 Report of the independent Expert Review Group (iERG) on Information and Accountability for Women’s and Children’s Health acknowledges World Vision Uganda for its role in strengthening accountability by holding government, policymakers and health services accountable for the health of women. This is under the UN Secretary General Strategy of Every Woman Every Child.

When you read page 76, it mentions some CSOs that have palyed a key role in strengthening accountability on women and children’s health in Uganda.

World Vision through its Child Health Now Campaign aims to reduce child deaths from 90 to 56 deaths per every 1000 live births by 2015. This report summarises progress towards MDGs 4 and 5, the delivery of commitments made to the UN SG’s Global Strategy, and the Commission’s recommendations. It also takes two new subjects—country accountability and adolescents—and reviews status in both areas. The iERG puts forth six new recommendations, in addition to those made last year, and reviews how the recommendations made in 2012 have been received and responded to by partners.

You can download the report from here  Independent Expert Review Group Report on Info and Accountability for Women and children Health

Enjoy the read

The State of Health Services in Kamwenge and Kibaale Districts

Ntara Health Centre IV in Kamwenge was one of the facilities that was assessed. The district has no hospital

In September 2013, World Vision Uganda conducted a Health Services Availability and Readiness Assessment (SARA) in Kamwenge and Kibaale Districts to support decision making and inform World Vision’s interventions in the health sector in these districts. The SARA exercise is a recommendation of the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Ministry of Health to equip health planners with the skills and information required to map and monitor service and resource availability.

The exercise was conducted in partnership with the WHO and was led by Dr. Michael Lukwiya. 55 health facilities in Kamwenge and 78 facilities in Kibaale were assessed in the exercise.

King Oyo Nyimba of Tooro, Becomes a Child Health Goodwill Ambassodor

King Oyo Nyimba of Tooro during the Empango Community Health Event in Fort Portal on 5th May, 2013. The King marched with community members and encouraged them to practice simple techniques like breast feeding and immunization to prevent child deaths

We watched in owe 18 years ago when he was enthroned as the King of Tooro at the age of 3. For this, King Oyo entered into the Guinness Book of Records as the youngest king in modern times. He rules over the second largest Kingdom in Uganda covering 5 districts. World Vision Uganda’s Child Health Now Campaign working in partnership with other Civil Society Organizations requested King Oyo to be a child health Goodwill Ambassador to which he consented.

It means he will dedicate some of his time to advocate for behavioral change practices towards the improvement of child and maternal health; lobby for resources towards this cause; utilize his influence to advocate for improved child well being in Uganda among other things. The King has come of age and he knows the challenges are enormous.

On 5th September 2013, two days shy of his 18th coronation anniversary, King Oyo marched with community members to raise awareness on the challenges of malnutrition

Breastfeeding and our culture

Hannah (not her real name) gave birth to her first baby, Susan at home in their two bedroom house in the village. In her culture, new born babies should never be exposed to many people for fear of losing them to people with an evil eye.Hannah stayed indoors for five days, protecting Susan. Finally, on the fifth day, Hannah got out of the house.A week later, Susan’s weigh remained the same, unhappy plus she had diarrhea.  Hannah and her Auntie rushed Susan to the nearest facility where she was admitted and put on drip (Glucose syrup).

Uganda: Young Couple Asks Museveni to Help in Tracing Lost Baby

This stoy was written in the Independent by Ronald Musoke, 26 July 2013

A youthful couple that allegedly lost one of their twin babies at Mulago Hospital’s Maternity Ward last year has asked President Museveni to intervene and save their young family from agony.According to Jennifer Musimenta, 21, the mother to the missing baby, she went to Mulago Hospital on the afternoon of March 14 last year to deliver and indeed she delivered two baby girls.However, she was surprised when moments later; one of the nurses told her that one of the babies had died.