Annual Report: Advocacy for Better Health October 01, 2018 to March 31, 2019

The project aims to empower citizens to demand improved quality, availability, and accessibility of health and social services in 35 districts across western, central, and eastern regions of Uganda. The project is grounded in the belief that increased citizens' knowledge and awareness of their rights and responsibilities, combined with the capacity of civil society organizations (CSOs) to effectively empower and represent communities, would motivate citizens to hold their leaders accountable and influence them to change health and social policies in their favor. The project focuses on three Results Areas: Citizens demand improved quality of health and social services, CSOs effectively advocate for issues of citizens' concern in the health and social sectors, and institutional capacity of CSOs strengthened. The thematic areas of focus include HIV/AIDS, TB, Malaria, Nutrition, Maternal and Child Health, Family Planning, and orphans and other vulnerable children. ABH works with communities and CSOs to generate evidence and advocate to responsible duty bearers on core advocacy priorities aimed at addressing systemic impediments to service delivery. The project had only one quarter of program implementation during the reporting period, from October 1, 2018, to March 31, 2019. Despite this, significant progress was made in several areas. For instance, 74% of community groups whose action plans advanced into the implementation phase, and 284 functional advocacy forums were established at the sub-county level. Additionally, 90% of districts included citizens' concerns for improved health and social services in their annual work plans. The project also made progress in strengthening the institutional capacity of CSOs. For example, 80% of CSOs demonstrated improvements in organizational capacity, and 100% of CSOs demonstrated improvements in the advocacy components of the Organizational and Advocacy Capacity Assessment (OACA). Furthermore, 3 sub-grantee CSOs attained adequate performance as defined in the OACA, and 3 sub-grantee CSOs qualified to receive direct donor funding in accordance with USAID's NUPAS. The project's success can be attributed to its collaborative approach, which brought together communities, CSOs, and duty bearers to address health and social challenges. The project's focus on evidence-based advocacy and capacity building has enabled CSOs to effectively advocate for improved health and social services. As the project continues, it is expected to build on this momentum and achieve its Results Areas, ultimately improving the quality and availability of health and social services in Uganda. The project's geographic coverage includes 35 districts across western, central, and eastern regions of Uganda. The districts are: Mpigi, Mityana, Sembabule, Kayunga, Luwero, Nakasongola, Kalangala, Kaliro, Kayunga, Mayuge, Iganga, Kamuli, Mbale, Sironko, Bududa, Budaka, Pallisa, Kumi, Kapchorwa, Bukwo, Butaleja, Busia, Bugiri, Namutumba, Kabale, Kisoro, Rukungiri, Ibanda, Kanungu, Isingiro, Kamwenge, Kyenjojo, Kasese, Kiruhura, and Bushenyi. The project's reporting period was from October 1, 2018, to March 31, 2019. The project's submission date was April 30, 2019, and the contract/agreement number was AID-617-A-14-00004. The project's activity start date was June 1, 2014, and the end date was March 31, 2019. The project's COR/AOR name was Dr. Nobert Mubiru, and the submitted by was Dr. Emmanuel Mugisha, Chief of Party, PATH.