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Government has released UGX 22 billion to the Ministry of Health to pay and deploy interns, according to Henry Musasizi, the state minister for Finance in charge of General Duties in Parliament yesterday 22^nd June 2022.

Government Of Uganda has released Ugx 22 billion to the Ministry of Health to pay and deploy interns, according to Henry Musasizi, the state minister for Finance in charge of General Duties. However, Health Minister Hon. Ruth Aceng has clarified that the UGX 22.9 billion released by Finance is not enough to pay for the deployment of the 1901 pre-medical interns. The money is meant for paying arrears of the 935 interns who completed their internships in April this year.

The health minister stated that they need UGX 80.4 billion to deploy the interns, and Finance has provided only UGX 8 billion for interns and UGX 2 billion for senior house officers. Therefore, they cannot deploy the interns until they are certain that the UGX 80.4 billion will be provided.

The Speaker of Parliament, Anita Among, demanded answers about the payment and deployment of 1,900 medical interns during the plenary sitting. Among expressed concern that if the interns are not paid, they cannot practice as doctors, and the government needs to have a plan for the 1,900 intern doctors and the 4,000 that are incoming.

Hon. Musasizi noted that the funding gap of UGX 22 billion for medical interns has been released, and all government entities have until June 30, 2023, to clear all the invoices for the financial year 2022/2023 that have been outstanding in the system.

Among urged the Minister to provide evidence that the money has been forwarded to the Ministry of Health and encouraged the Executive to have a stakeholders’ engagement on the issue of interns for better planning. She emphasized the need to have a provision for money to pay for sciences and to plan for the people who are already out there.

The revelation raised more questions from MPs and Rakai Woman MP, Juliet Kyinyamatama Suubi tasked Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja to explain the fate of the 1,900 interns that are yet to be deployed and paid.

In response, Nabbanja told Parliament that she had constituted an inter-ministerial committee this month to handle the issue of interns. She requested for two weeks to report back on the issue and Speaker Among granted her request.