Uganda and South Sudan have signed a Memorandum of Understanding on cross-border health security, marking a new phase of cooperation between the two neighbouring countries in preparing for and responding to disease outbreaks.
The agreement was yesterday September 8th signed in Juba by Uganda’s Minister of Health Dr Chris Baryomunsi and his South Sudanese counterpart, Dr Luke Thompson Thoan Teny.
While Speaking at the ceremony, Uganda’s Minister of Health Dr Baryomunsi conveyed greetings from President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni and described the agreement as more than a routine diplomatic formality, calling it a foundation for joint action before, during and after a public health emergency.
The Memorandum of Understanding draws on lessons from the Uganda–Democratic Republic of Congo cross-border health initiative, under which Ugandan health teams have worked alongside Congolese counterparts at Ebola treatment centres and mobile laboratories in Aru, Kasenyi and Butembo.
Officials said the new framework aims to build a more systematic and sustained model that other African nations could eventually replicate and central to the agreement is a Joint Implementation Plan, intended to translate into political commitments into concrete priorities, timelines, responsibilities and resources.
Minister Baryomunsi stressed that disease threats are constantly evolving, and that health systems must be able to learn, adjust and activate accordingly.
He also called on regional and continental bodies — including IGAD, the East African Community, Africa CDC and the World Health Organization — to better coordinate and align their capabilities so that no country faces a public health emergency alone and hailed both the Africa Center for Disease Control and World Health and for facilitating the agreement.
The two countries plan to establish a one-year joint accountability review, with progress to be reported when the ministers meet again in Kampala.
The South Sudan Minister said that that there is hopes that meeting will focus on results rather than ceremony, referencing the shared spirit of Ubuntu as the underlying philosophy of the partnership.
The event was attended by the Uganda’s Director General of Health Services, Prof Charles Olaro and Incident Commander Col Dr Henry Kyobe, were recognised for their roles in bringing the agreement to fruition.
