The Hon. Minister of State for Gender, Labour and Social Development in charge of Disability Affairs Hon. Acan Joyce Okeny, today commenced her nationwide tour to assess the condition of rehabilitation centers, with her first tour at Mpumudde Rehabilitation Centre in Jinja City, a special school facility that accommodates girls with disabilities.
Hon. Acan was accompanied by the Assistant Commissioner in charge of Elderly and Disability Affairs, Ms. Emily Ajambo.
What was meant to be a routine inspection turned into a moment of deep concern as the delegation was confronted with a facility in total ruin, evacuated and unfit for human habitation.
The centre, which serves as both a school and a home for vulnerable girls with disabilities, was found with deep cracks in dormitory walls, heavily leaking roofs, broken windows, collapsing ceilings and severely weakened foundations. The structures were deemed so dangerous that management was forced to evacuate the learners after establishing that their lives were at immediate risk. The girls have since been temporarily shifted to a congested alternative facility nearby.
Hon. Acan and her team were visibly disturbed, walked through the deserted structures and described what she saw as heartbreaking and unacceptable.
“What I have seen here at Mpumudde is heartbreaking. This centre is supposed to be a home of hope for our girls with disabilities, but instead it has become a death trap. No Ugandan child, regardless of their disability, should be forced to learn or sleep in such a deplorable and life-threatening environment,” Hon. Acan said.
She pledged to lobby government for emergency funding to ensure the centre is comprehensively refurbished to a modern, dignified standard that can accommodate more students.
In a more disturbing revelation, it emerged that the girls' facility has been operating without a school nurse and without a matron, making it extremely difficult for male instructors to manage the unique and sensitive needs of girls, especially at night and during emergencies.
The School Instructor and Rehabilitation Officer, Mr. Kiyemba Steven, decried the poor living conditions, acute understaffing and lack of facilitation.
“Hon. Minister, this is a girls' facility but we have no nurse and no matron. All of us here are male instructors. It becomes very difficult to handle girls' issues, especially at night when a girl falls sick. We appeal to the government to empower us so we can accommodate more girls and give them quality care,” Mr. Kiyemba pleaded.
Speaking during the inspection, the Assistant Commissioner in charge of Elderly and Disability Affairs, Ms. Emily Ajambo, said the state of Mpumudde is a clear reflection of the long standing gaps in the rehabilitation sector that the Ministry is now determined to fix.
“We have commenced this nationwide assessment to have a comprehensive, evidence-based status report on all rehabilitation centers. What we have seen at Mpumudde validates why this exercise is critical. These centres are central to our mandate of skilling, rehabilitation and inclusion of Persons with Disabilities,” Ms. Ajambo said.
She emphasized that government policy requires all special facilities, especially those accommodating girls, to have mandatory safeguarding personnel including a matron and a resident nurse.
“A girls' facility without a matron and without a nurse is a major safeguarding gap. It contravenes our care standards. As technical wing, we shall document this comprehensively and ensure that recruitment of essential staff and provision of instructional materials are prioritized in our next budget framework,” she added.
Responding to both concerns, Hon. Acan Joyce assured the staff that she will personally raise the matter urgently in the Cabinet.
“I have listened to Mr. Kiyemba and to the technical guidance of Commissioner Ajambo. How can a girls' school for children with disabilities operate without a nurse and without a matron? This is a very serious safeguarding issue. I will take this matter to Cabinet and lobby for emergency funding to ensure Mpumudde is fully refurbished, staffed with female caregivers and equipped,” Hon. Acan pledged.
The nationwide assessment tour will continue to other regions in the coming weeks.
Keneth Nuwagira, Press Secretary
Office of the Hon. Minister of State for Gender, Labour and Social Development (Disability Affairs).
