Over 2,000 police officers in Kampala and other metropolitan areas are battling with the deadly HIV/AIDs.
This information is contained in a Police quarterly budget performance report for FYs 2017/18 and 2018/19 that is meant to be presented before the Parliament committee on Defence and Internal Affairs next week.
According to report, Police is spending about a billion shilling in providing healthcare for 1,745 police officers living with HIV/AIDs supported with palliative care. This excludes some officers living with HIV who have not sought palliative care with the police medical facilities. In total, Police reports that in FY 2017/18, the institution used over Shs3bn in welfare of the police officers.
As a result of this high HIV scourge among officers, police accredited 2 more police health centers for HIV/AIDs treatment and care, they also provided ART services to 762 clients and supportive counseling to 853 clients. Among other things include; providing essential drugs stocks to 92 police health units, as well as fitness, wellness, counselling and psycho-socio support to 80 officers where 15% were females.
According to a 2014 report from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), HIV/AIDS prevalence in the Police force is high (1.5%) compared to the 7.3% average national prevalence.
As a result, USAID embarked on safe male circumcision, access to ARV drugs, TB treatment and condom use promotion in the 14 health units under the Police and Prison institutions.
Another report recently revealed that HIV/AIDS prevalence rates in the army remain worryingly high, raising fears that it could be the single biggest threat to Uganda’s security.
This finding was contained in a report titled ‘State Responsiveness to Public Security Needs: The Politics of Security Decision-Making,’ that was released recently by the Conflict, Security and Development Group at King’s College London, a constituent college of the University of London.
The study looked at armies in three Commonwealth countries; Uganda, Nigeria and Sri Lanka.
The 90-page report on Uganda estimates the HIV/AIDS prevalence rates in the UPDF to be between 27% and 30%—more than four times above the national prevalence rate of 6.7%.
In real terms, it means that more than 15, 000 soldiers or 20 battalions are infected with the virus that causes AIDS.
