Parliament has adopted a petition by the Uganda Women’s Parliamentary Association (UWOPA) on the increasing cases of maternal mortality in the country.

While presiding over the plenary session on Thursday, May 25, 2023, the Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Thomas Tayebwa, directed that the resolutions be extracted and submitted to the Minister of Health for immediate action. 

In the petition presented in Parliament by the UWOPA Chairperson, MP Sarah Opendi (Tororo District) called for urgent attention by the government to rescue the escalating situation in the country. 

“We lose 16 mothers every day at the health facility level,” she said. 

The petition appealed to the government to prioritize and provide sufficient funds in the national budget for maternal health care. 

“The government should improve access to quality care and medicines among poor and marginalized populations. Mothers are expected to buy supplies needed for childbirth and theater fees at public facilities. The mothers continue to complain about dehumanization during childbirth in these facilities,” said Opendi. 

MP Betty Aol of Gulu City says high maternal mortality is also a result of poor infrastructure. 

“In Gulu, we have one of the best health facilities called Mary Queen of Peace, but it doesn’t have good roads and there is no electricity,” said Aol. 

According to MP Josyline Kamateneti (Ntungamo District), the quickest measure to reduce maternal deaths is to increase the budget for the Ministry of Health. 

According to MP Christine Kaaya, medical personnel need to do their work regardless of whether the expectant mother has come [to the hospital] with the father of the baby or not so that we reduce maternal deaths.

MP Geoffrey Macho of Busia Municipality proposes that the Ministry of Health should establish blood banks in all referral hospitals, while MP Paul Akamba of Busiki County calls for a clear mechanism for patients to access blood in health facilities. 

According to the 2016 Uganda Demographic Health Survey, the maternal mortality rate in Uganda stands at 336 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births.