Uganda: Uganda, U.S. Sign $1.7 Billion Health Sector Agreement

What the report says

Uganda and the United States have signed a five-year health sector agreement that will guide roughly $1.7 billion in U.S. support for Uganda’s health system from 2026 to 2030, according to Nile Post, which published the report on AllAfrica. The agreement was signed in Kampala at the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development by Minister of State for Finance Henry Musasizi and U.S. Embassy Chargé d’Affaires Mikael Cleverley.

The deal shifts a large share of American health assistance away from off-budget support delivered through non-governmental organizations and toward direct government-to-government financing. Under the new arrangement, funds will be channelled more through Uganda’s finance ministry, with the stated aim of improving national ownership, aligning aid with government priorities and making health programmes more sustainable.

Nile Post reported that the agreement activates a memorandum of understanding signed by the two countries on December 10, 2025. The overall co-investment package is valued at $2.3 billion, including a Ugandan commitment to raise domestic health spending by more than $500 million over five years. The support is intended to help with disease prevention, detection and emergency response.

Uganda’s health minister, Dr. Chris Baryomunsi, welcomed the shift and said the country still faces a heavy burden of communicable and non-communicable diseases. The agreement matters because it signals a broader move toward direct budget support and deeper state involvement in managing external health aid, a model that could affect how future development assistance is delivered.