Entebbe, 11th November 2014:- The Minister of State for Health in Charge of General Duties Hon. Elioda Tumwesigye has urged men to play their part in maternal health care. This he said at the launch of the National Male Involvement Strategy and Guidelines at LAICO Lake Victoria Hotel, Entebbe.

Hon. Tumwesigye said that men’s knowledge about danger-signs of pregnancy and what to do with them is very relevant to their lifesaving role during pregnancy and childbirth. “Emphasize involvement of men to be part of everything; healthy feeding, good sanitation, immunization, family planning and fighting malaria and HIV/AIDS,” he said.

The Director General of Health Services Dr. Ruth Achieng said that the issue of male participation has a cultural background that affects uptake and utilization of health services in Uganda. She said that the role of promoting positive health outcomes in households and communities is very crucial and must be addressed at all levels.

Dr. Achieng said that health staff are adopting innovative approaches to have couples come for Anti-Natal Care together.

The WHO Country Representative Dr. Alemu Wondimagegnehu noted that there is a growing number of programs engaging men in reproductive health now in Uganda and this reflects exciting changes in the field. He said that the Male involvement initiative being led by the Ministry of Health is a key component of the Joint Program on Population (JPP).

In a WHO report, it was noted that, the Cairo Conference on Population and Development (1994) urged that special efforts should be made to emphasize men’s shared responsibility and promote their active involvement in responsible parenthood, sexual and reproductive including family planning, prevention of sexually transmitted diseases including HIV/AIDS, prevention of unwanted and high-risk pregnancies with special emphasis being put on prevention of violence against women and children.

It was noted that there was a gap in the knowledge of reproductive health issues as they relate to men.

A Ministry of Health Report indicates that a cross-sectional survey of 388 men aged 18 years or more, whose spouses were attending antenatal care at Mbale Regional Referral Hospital, was conducted in Mbale district, Eastern Uganda.  The respondents had a median age of 32 years. The survey indicated that there was a low male involvement index and only 5% of men accompanied their spouses to the antenatal clinic. Men who had attained secondary education were more likely to have a high male involvement index than those who had primary or no formal education. The respondents  who had fear of disclosure of their HIV sero-status results to their spouses, were less likely to have a high male involvement index. Barriers to male involvement were related to both the poor health system, to socio-economic factors and to cultural beliefs.

The workshop brought together CSOs, the Ministry of Health, WHO and the media.