The CEHURD team met in Gulu in July for the mid-year staff retreat, a valuable opportunity to refresh and plan for the second half of the year. The retreat featured a series of enriching sessions, including in-depth appraisals of our institution’s key approaches, policies, and core values. This ensured that every team member was aligned and equipped to drive our mission forward.
Additionally, we warmly welcomed and oriented new staff members, introducing them to our team’s dynamic and inclusive culture. The retreat provided a platform for meaningful connections, knowledge sharing, and collaborative planning, setting us up for a productive and successful second half of the year.
Gulu District, where we held our retreat, is one of the districts where we implement our projects. In fact, we have successfully implemented three significant projects in the northern and West Nile region, including DINU, Stand 4 SRHR, and TASO Global Fund Projects OVC phase 7. These projects have enabled us to make a positive impact in the lives of the people in Gulu and surrounding areas, and we look forward to continuing our work in this region.
𝗪𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗲𝗲𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗔𝗿𝘂𝗮, 𝗠𝗮𝗱𝗶-𝗢𝗸𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼, 𝗧𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗴𝗼 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗬𝘂𝗺𝗯𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘁𝘀, 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗰𝘂𝘀𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗼𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗼𝗻 𝗖𝗘𝗛𝗨𝗥𝗗’𝘀 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘁𝘀.
Mr Alfred Okuonzi, LC 5 Chairperson, West Nile Districts and focal person for NGOs and CSOs ~ ❝CEHURD has been a valuable partner in improving healthcare in Uganda, particularly in the West Nile region thereby complimenting Government efforts. He observed that CEHURD’s relationship with West Nile is like padlock and key – inseparable and made reference to CEHURD’s impactful TB contact tracing work within the last 3 years under TASO/Global Fund programme and Social Accountability and Legal Empowerment for social services under DINU project.
CEHURD’s work stands out and supports our goal of social accountability. Local Government values your role as a watchdog improving Uganda’s healthcare system and sees you as partners, not opposition.❞
Mr Okuonzi further noted that the TB detection rate is still low in the region, teenage pregnancy is 27% above national average of 24%, early marriages continue to be high, gender based violence and girls dropping out of school. He called on CEHURD to continue with the collaboration in addressing these persistent challenges and specifically requested for support in the development of Ordinances to that focus on these issues.
Mr Anyama Williams, Chairperson, West Nile Local Government Association observed that West Nile bears the burden of providing healthcare services to the districts in the region as well as the inflow of patients from neighbouring DR Congo and South Sudan, yet with no additional budget to cater for this inflow and cannot turn away patients from these countries.
❝We appreciate the oversight responsibility of CEHURD. Please also consider paying attention to the challenge of the many young people who are already struggling with poverty and are using the little they have to buy “Mairungi”. Each week a young person spends the same amount they would spend on a bag of cement. Not many partners have picked interest in addressing this problem, yet i believe it is a social justice issue.❞
Compiled by CEHURD’s Communications team.