With an 8.9% budget allocation to the health sector, according to the 2010 Africa Health Financing Scorecard, Uganda is ranked 28th out of the 53 countries in Africa.

Dr. Steven Malinga, Uganda's Minister of health

The scorecard is a summary of findings on the 2009/2010 Abuja commitment of African Heads of State and governments to allocate 15% of their domestic budgets to the health sector.

The scorecard highlights the percentage allocation of budgets and per capita investment in health. This is evaluated alongside high external resources for health which impacts on domestic resource mobilization and sustainability.

Only six countries have met the 15% commitment of their budgets to the health sectors and 32 out of the 53 African Union member states invest under $20 per capita in health which is less than half the barest minimum amount recommended by the World Health Organization. However on average Africa’s per capita expenditure on health is $27.

Africa’s average budget allocation on health is 8.7% and comparatively Europe’s average is 14.8% and America’s average is 16.8%.

There is little or no doubt that health investment is clearly crucial to sustainable economic and social development in Africa given that it is the continent that is most laden with a disease burden. Investment in health can free up resources of people who spent the little they have on treatment while the time they spend sick can be used for economic activities.

By Tiberindwa Zakaria