RUBIRIZI – Ministry of Health, in partnership with the Rubirizi District health department, has equipped frontline health workers with critical tools, knowledge, and skills aimed at fully operationalizing the Buy Uganda, Build Uganda (BUBU) policy.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!The high-impact training, held at Katunguru Health Centre III, brought together facility in-charges, storekeepers, nurses, midwives, and clinical officers from across the district.
The primary goal was to shift health facility operations from import dependency toward the utilization of locally manufactured, high-quality health products, reducing stockouts and keeping essential services running without interruption.
Dr. Tumwesigye Sezi confirmed the training was designed to make the Buy Uganda, Build Uganda policy practical for daily facility work by reducing dependency on imports and unpredictable donor funding.
He noted that Uganda now buys certain medicines and testing kits from within the country, so health workers must learn to trust locally made products like HIV, hepatitis B, sickle cell, and malaria rapid diagnostic kits.
“This training helps health workers use the Buy Uganda, Build Uganda policy in their daily work. Since Uganda now makes its own HIV, hepatitis B, sickle cell, and malaria testing kits, workers must learn to trust and use these local products. We have given them the skills to handle locally made supplies, which improves honesty, good reporting, and patient safety,” said Dr. Sezi.
The health workers received the tools, knowledge, and skills to handle these locally manufactured products with confidence, improving accountability, reporting transparency, and patient safety.
Embracing the BUBU policy also allows quicker equipment maintenance and faster restocking from local suppliers, preventing paralyzing stockouts and keeping services running reliably.
Mbusa James, the In-Charge of Katunguru Health Centre III and a participant in the training, expressed profound appreciation to the Rubirizi District Health Department and the central government for the initiative.
“This training has given us a new mindset and practical skills that will fundamentally change our daily work. We now understand that quality is not about where a product comes from but about the standards it meets. By prioritizing Ugandan-made health products, we will improve our performance, reduce dependency on imports and donor funding, and strengthen our own economy,” Mbusa said.
He added that the knowledge gained on quality assurance and compliance will help health workers better monitor and report the efficacy of locally sourced items, ensuring patient safety remains paramount.
The BUBU policy, a flagship initiative of the Ugandan government, seeks to promote local manufacturing and consumption across all sectors.
The training marked a significant milestone in embedding that policy within the country’s health infrastructure, reducing waste, creating local jobs, and ensuring that people receive quality healthcare built on Ugandan resources.
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