The newly appointed Minister of Health, Dr. Chris Baryomunsi, has moved to calm growing anxieties over the medical internship crisis, assuring the public that government-sponsored interns will continue to receive full facilitation while the ministry explores options to assist privately sponsored graduates.
Speaking at the official handover ceremony at the ministry headquarters on Wednesday, June 10, Dr Baryomunsi revealed that the Cabinet has directed the ministry to assess the financial implications of supporting privately sponsored graduates undertaking their mandatory one-year medical internship.
“Those who are on government sponsorship will proceed on internship with full support from the government. There is no disruption. It will continue,” Dr Baryomunsi stated.
“We are going to study the financial implications of providing lunch to those who graduate from private facilities… the government can provide lunch to enable them to work.”
The medical internship program in Uganda has recently faced severe strain, characterized by delayed deployments and protests from pre-interns over allowances. Dr Baryomunsi attributed these persistent bottlenecks to a sharp increase in the number of medical graduates from both public and private universities.
To resolve this sustainably, the minister emphasized the need for long-term human resource planning to align health workforce training with the country’s actual staffing requirements.
“Human resource needs in the health sector should be assessed to see how many doctors, nurses, and laboratory experts we need in the next five, 10, or 15 years so that there is a planned arrangement between us and the Ministry of Education that handles training,” he explained.
Beyond internal planning, Dr Baryomunsi identified managing the country’s current Ebola outbreak as an immediate priority, pledging to strengthen ongoing response and containment efforts.
Dr. Baryomunsi’s appointment marks a return to a familiar docket. He previously served as the State Minister of Health for General Duties from March 2015 until June 2016, before being transferred to other Cabinet portfolios, including a stint as the Minister for ICT and National Guidance starting in 2021.
Leveraging his recent experience in the ICT sector, the new minister promised to spearhead the digitalization of health services and improve public communication. He also issued a stern warning to ministry staff regarding accountability and transparency.
“We need to vaccinate ourselves against corruption. No more corruption, as the President themed this term. We shall improve that expertise to see that the health sector can actually make advances as we integrate technology in our work,” Dr Baryomunsi warned.
The outgoing Minister of Health, Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng Ocero, who has been appointed Government Chief Whip, officially handed over the docket. Reflecting on her tenure, Dr. Aceng highlighted milestones including the successful containment of Uganda’s eighth Ebola outbreak, the expansion of intensive care services, and progress on the Lubowa Specialized Hospital project, which she disclosed is now about 70 percent complete.
However, Dr Aceng cautioned her successor about deep-seated systemic challenges that still plague Uganda’s healthcare delivery. She cited inadequate sector financing, a high disease burden-driven by malaria, HIV/AIDS, non-communicable diseases, and mental health conditions-and critically low health insurance coverage, which currently stands at just 1 percent of the population.
She urged Dr Baryomunsi to prioritize the long-pending National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) Bill, tackle health worker absenteeism, and accelerate the recruitment and retention of specialists.
“That bill is very important for the population,” Dr. Aceng said, while advising her successor to maintain a close, collaborative relationship with ministry technocrats through regular briefings to ensure well-informed decision-making at the Cabinet level.