The Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Thomas Tayebwa, has strongly called for a fight against alcoholism, which has led to raising cases of hunger and malnutrition among children in Uganda.

Tayebwa made the appeal during the 2nd National Children’s Parliament, held at Parliament on July 26, 2024, under the theme “A Call to End Child Hunger and Malnutrition.”

Tayebwa noted that women are often married to men who are heavy drinkers and lose family plantations that generate income for essential needs, such as school fees for their children, at the cost of their drunk husbands. He shared a disturbing incident from his constituency in Ruhinda North, Mitooma district, where men prioritize alcohol over providing for their families.

“I have seen men in my area who only eat meat at local waragi distillation points in exchange for three batches of bananas, while their children and wives are left to survive on dodo and beans,” Tayebwa noted.

The Parliament invited students from schools across the country to debate the challenges of hunger and malnutrition in their homes and schools, aiming to empower them to participate in advocacy and change the mindsets of adults to better support their needs.