Baylor College of Medicine
Children’s Foundation - Uganda
Children’s Foundation - Uganda
KAMPALA ,9th February 2026: The Ministry of Health has officially launched a nationwide mandatory newborn screening programme for sickle cell disease (SCD), marking a major milestone in strengthening early diagnosis and long-term management of the condition in Uganda. The launch took place today at the Ministry of Health headquarters and brought together health leaders, specialists, and partners committed to improving child health outcomes.
Sickle cell disease is a lifelong, inherited blood disorder and remains a leading cause of childhood illness and death in Uganda. The condition is characterized by chronic anaemia, recurrent and severe pain episodes, disability due to childhood strokes, and early death from infections. Globally, an estimated 7.7 million people were living with SCD in 2023, with over 80% residing in sub-Saharan Africa.
In Uganda, approximately 20,000 children are born with SCD each year, according to a 2016 study published in The Lancet Global Health. As a result, Uganda ranks third in Africa and tenth globally in terms of SCD burden. An estimated 6,000–9,000 children die annually, largely due to preventable complications such as severe infections and anaemia.
Speaking at the event, Dr. Munube Deogracious, a specialist from Mulago National Referral Hospital, emphasized that early detection significantly improves health outcomes for children with SCD. He noted that diagnosis at birth enables timely medical intervention, caregiver education, and consistent follow-up care—critical measures for preventing severe complications.
Dr. Munube further stressed that every child born with sickle cell disease deserves to be diagnosed at birth, describing newborn screening as a vital step toward health equity and giving affected children a better chance at a healthy life.
The Chief Guest, Dr. Diana Atwine, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Health, underscored the urgency of early detection, intervention, and prevention. She encouraged couples to undergo screening and genetic counselling, noting that informed reproductive choices can help reduce the incidence of sickle cell disease and prevent avoidable suffering. Dr. Atwine cautioned that failure to act decisively could position sickle cell disease as Uganda’s next major public health crisis.
She further highlighted ongoing government efforts to establish specialized sickle cell clinics to provide comprehensive care and to strengthen laboratory screening services nationwide for timely and accurate diagnosis. She noted that investing in early screening and care will reduce complications, improve survival rates, and significantly ease the long-term burden on the health system.
The nationwide newborn screening programme builds on earlier efforts to integrate and scale up sickle cell disease care within the primary healthcare system, which began in the Kayunga and Lira Regional sickle cell disease care centres of excellence, funded by the Bristol Myers Squibb Foundation through Texas Children’s Global Health to Baylor College of Medicine Children’s Foundation-Uganda.
Led by the Ministry of Health through the Uganda National Health Laboratory and Diagnostic Services, in collaboration with Baylor College of Medicine Children’s Foundation-Uganda, Makerere University, Uganda Pediatric Association, and Mulago National Referral Hospital, the programme has expanded access to timely childhood vaccinations, prophylactic penicillin to prevent fatal infections, and hydroxyurea, a disease-modifying treatment that reduces sickle cell disease complications.
