O’dupiri Health Centre III in Tara Sub-county has been commissioned. The exercise conducted by Hajji Ramathan Walugembe, Maracha Resident District Commissioner, involved commissioning of a two-in-one staff house, general and maternity ward, a VIP latrine, a placenta pit, and medical waste disposal facility.

The upgrade of O’dupiri Health Centre II to III was funded by Uganda Intergovernmental Fiscal Transfers Program for Results (UgIFT). UgIFT aims to boost local governments service delivery in education, health, water and environment, and micro irrigation.

Hon. Obega Jabo Aquilino, LC3 Chairperson Tara Sub-county, commended Government of Uganda for the infrastructural transformation at the health unit.  He also appreciated the District for listening to their plea for the upgrade of the facility and seeing to it that Ministry of Health acts.  He added the upgrade facilities the extension of healthcare services closer to the residents.

“In the past our people suffered there were no means of carrying them.  Carrying a pregnant woman from here on a stretcher up to Ovujo, by the time you reach Ovujo you are too tired.” He said.

Eng. Ezati Timothy, Maracha District Engineer, tasked the HUMC to come up with an O&M plan to prevent run-down of the new facilities.  In the same vein, he said the facility had acquired new medical equipment standardized for a health centre IV and appealed to the health workers to guard it jealously “it’s upon you to ensure that these equipment are not stolen, these equipment are not destroyed.”

Dr. Onzubo Paul, Maracha District Health Officer, said the construction works which begun in the FY 2020/21 delayed due to the second countrywide Covid-19 lockdown and the subsequent distortion in the market for construction material.

Dr. Onzubo said with the lifting of the ban of recruitment of government workers there would be more staff deployed in the health facility. He also said there should be transfer of existing staff to fill the gaps.

He said the new staff house was supposed to be built at Liko Health Centre II but the district health team did not see it fair to have a third staff housing structure at Liko Health Centre II yet the then O’dupiri Health Centre II had one staff house “we proposed to the Social Services Committee it went to Council, Council blessed it, that is why that facility is here.”

Mr. Olila Patrick, Maracha District Chief Administrative Officer, commended the team work of the technical and political leaders that made it possible for the completion of the project become a reality.

Hon. Obitre Stephen, Maracha District Chairperson, observed most times there is public misinformation when projects hit a snag. He asked Tara Sub-county to expedite efforts to create a diversion for a public road that runs through the health unit.

Hajji Walugembe said Government of Uganda had done a lot in transforming the country which is visibly seen.  He said that his Office had embarked on a district wide exercise of documenting queries regarding the Parish Development Model (PDM) program and asked  the residents to reach out to their GISO in case they had complaints to put forward.

The upgrade of the facility cost Ugx 600m. The UgIFT program contributes to the Government’s Intergovernmental Fiscal Transfer Reform Program (IFTRP), which aims to strengthen the financing of local governments, increasing the overall level of funding and reducing the disparities in funding for service delivery across local governments.