The Uganda Police Force and the Ministry of Health, in partnership with the National Medical Stores (NMS) and the State House Health Monitoring Unit, are laying down a comprehensive crackdown strategy against the rampant theft of government supplied medicines plaguing public health facilities.
The initiative, dubbed “Operation Safeguard Essentials,” aims to curb the diversion of pharmaceuticals to black markets, which has led to chronic shortages in hospitals and clinics across the country.
Police spokesperson ACP Rusoke Kituuma, speaking at a press conference held at the Uganda Media Centre, on 29th September, 2025, detailed the collaborative measures, emphasizing a zero-tolerance approach to corruption and pilferage within the health supply chain.
“Drug theft is not just a crime, it is a direct assault on the lives of Ugandans who rely on these facilities for care, we are deploying every resource at our disposal to ensure accountability and restore public trust in our healthcare system,” Kituuma stated.
The theft of essential drugs ranging from antibiotics and antiretrovirals to painkillers has been a persistent scourge in Uganda’s government aided hospitals for years, attributed to factors like inadequate security, poor inventory management, and outright corruption among some healthcare workers.
NMS boss Moses Kamabare shared shocking details about how certain individuals working within government health facilities are involved in illegal activities to smuggle medicines.
According to Kamabare, these medicines are often taken out of the facilities through various forms, including boda bodas that are stationed outside the health facility or vehicles that “pretend” to transport patients.
“We have not only heard but seen medicines that have been smuggled or attempted to be smuggled at the health facilities through coffins,”Kamabare remarked.
A recent study highlighted that these diversions result in significant financial losses to taxpayers and exacerbate medicine shortages, sometimes leading to preventable deaths.
Officials estimate that up to 30% of donated or procured drugs vanish before reaching patients, fueling illegal sales in private pharmacies and even cross border markets in neighboring countries like South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
However, in this new strategy, all drug consignments from NMS will now be fitted with RFID tags and GPS enabled seals to monitor movement from warehouses to district health centers.
The new crackdown is backed by the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Control) Act 2023, which classifies the theft of government-supplied medicines as a non-bailable offense. Offenders caught with stolen drugs could face up to 15 years in prison.
As Uganda races toward its 2040 Vision of universal health coverage, curbing drug theft is seen as crucial.
Authorities have pledged to launch an anonymous whistleblower app in addition to the toll-free hotline (0800-123-456) to encourage the public to report suspicious activities related to drug theft.
