President Yoweri Museveni has been recognized by the African Society for Laboratory Medicine (ASLM) as the ASLM Champion for his leadership in improving health laboratory services across Africa.
The ASLM commended President Museveni for his visionary leadership, Pan-Africanism, and alignment with both the African Union’s Agenda 2063 and the Global Agenda 2030.
The recognition was based on his commitment to advancing health services, with a specific focus on strengthening the laboratory sector in Uganda and beyond.
In his remarks, ASLM CEO Mr. Nqobile Ndlovu highlighted President Museveni’s pioneering role in the fight against HIV/AIDS noting that at a time when the science behind the disease was still evolving, Museveni took decisive action by promoting testing, abstinence, condom use, and treatment for those infected.
This approach contributed to Uganda’s significant reduction in HIV prevalence, from 18% of the population to 5.7% today.
Ndlovu also praised Uganda’s expansion of testing to all health facilities, its innovation in self-testing, and the scaling up of rapid diagnostic test (RDT) production for HIV.
“Beyond Uganda’s achievements in the lab sector, President Museveni’s contributions to pandemic preparedness and health system management across the continent have been invaluable,” Ndlovu added.
President Museveni received the award on Tuesday during the ASLM Special Convention on Diagnostics in Abidjan, Ivory Coast.
In his acceptance speech, he expressed gratitude for the recognition and reaffirmed Uganda’s commitment to increasing access to affordable, high-quality laboratory services.
“Uganda is dedicated to ensuring early disease detection and effective outbreak management,” Museveni said. “This aligns with our broader vision of strengthening local capacities and promoting manufacturing independence for African nations.”
He also reflected on Uganda’s progress in building capacity to manage both routine health services and disease outbreaks, offering to share the country’s experiences with other African nations.
“Our Ministry of Health, through the National Health Laboratories and Diagnostics Services (NHLDS), is supporting several continental programs focused on health systems strengthening,” he added.
Ministry of Health Permanent Secretary Dr. Diana Atwine, who received the award on behalf of the President, thanked ASLM for the recognition and she emphasized that this honor reflects confidence in Africa’s ability to address its own challenges.
“We believe in our capacity as Africans to solve our problems. We just need to work together, and we will succeed,” Dr. Atwine stated.
Dr. Atwine was accompanied by Director General of Health Services Dr. Henry Mwebesa and Commissioner for Laboratory Services Dr. Susan Nabadda at the event in Abidjan.
