A State-of-the-Art Mobile Lab Secured for Uganda at the 2023 Russia-Africa Summit
28th July 2023
St. Petersburg: The 2023 Russia-Africa Summit proved to be a significant event for Uganda’s Health Laboratory sector, as Hon. Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng, the Minister for Health, announced a major achievement. During the summit, she disclosed that Uganda's health sector had successfully secured a state-of-the-art mobile laboratory.
In a tweet, Dr. Aceng expressed her gratitude on behalf of the Government of Uganda for receiving this cutting-edge mobile laboratory.
“Today, on the sidelines of the Russia-Africa summit, I, on behalf of Government of Uganda, received a state of the art mobile laboratory that can run both bacteriological and virological samples at the point of care. In addition, we signed a road map of cooperation in the field of research, training, and capacity building. We appreciate the Russian Federation for this generous offer.”
Accompanying the Minister for Health was Dr. Susan Nabadda, the NHLDS Commissioner, who lent her support to this momentous occasion.
Notably, this announcement came just days after the laboratory sector received another mobile laboratory from the EU-IGAD COVID 19 Response program. With this latest addition, Uganda now boasts of three type 3 mobile laboratory trucks within its laboratory sector.
Patrick Ogwok, the NHLDS Quality Assurance Director, who received the mobile lab at the Ministry of Health headquarters, emphasized the need for even greater access to these mobile trucks. He requested that at least one mobile laboratory be made available for each of the 16 medical regions across Uganda (Regional Referral Hospitals). He also called for the development of human and technical resources to efficiently operate and manage these mobile laboratory trucks to ensure full utilization.
