Uganda

The Republic of Uganda is located in east Africa, with Kampala as its capital. As of 2008, the country's population stood at 31.9 million, with Christians accounting for 85 percent of all Ugandans. Uganda is landlocked and its size is comparable to the state of Oregon (93,070 square miles). Motherhood is very important for the people of Uganda, as evidenced by changes in traditions and laws designed to empower mothers. Today, Ugandan women have divorce rights; however, not long ago Ugandan society considered men superior to women, who were not legally permitted to file for divorce, even when victims of domestic violence. When considering motherhood in Uganda, important social processes such as fertility rates, marriage structure, financial support to poor and unwed mothers, religion and culture, birth control practices, educational attainment, and social status must be examined.

Uganda has the highest total fertility rate (TFR), which is the total number children per mother, of all eastern and central African nations that participated in the Demographic Health Surveys (DHS) program in 2006. Its high TFR is associated with population density, child dependency, food shortages, and malnourishment at the national level. Together, these factors strain the economy, decrease quality of life, and shorten the life expectancy. More than a quarter of all married Ugandan women are in polygamous unions, and as a result, at an elevated risk for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Abortion remains illegal unless in life-threatening situations; this contributes to high rates of unsafe abortions among Ugandan women. In an effort to reduce unsafe abortions, the government has made safe motherhood a priority, and large-scale family programs that teach women about child spacing and contraceptive use have been implemented.

Statistics show that almost half of all married women have ever used birth control in their lifetime; common contraceptives include injection (Depo Provera), birth control pills, Norplant, male condoms, and the rhythm method. Although prenatal care is almost universal in Uganda, less than half of all pregnant women saw a doctor for more than four visits during their pregnancies, with the majority of all pregnant women beginning prenatal visits in the third trimester. This has led to poor maternal and child health outcomes overall. While the government does provide direct financial support to women in need, it does so in collaboration with nongovernmental agencies such as United [Page 1226]Nations. Uganda has a literacy rate of 67 percent, with a female literacy rate that lags behind that of males by 20 percentage points.

Save the Mothers is a Canadian Christian organization committed to improving the quality of life for mothers in the developing world; Uganda, with high rates of maternal and infant mortality, was chosen as their first location. They operate in partnership with local professionals; their first project, conducted as a joint initiative with the Ugandan OB/GYN association, was an intervention that increased the availability and utilization of emergency obstetric care in a rural district in Uganda.

A number of Ugandan women have achieved national and international notoriety including the country's first-ever woman vice president, Specioza Kazibwe, and the current first lady Janet Museveni who has come to be known as maama, or mother, through her charitable activities with orphan children beginning in 1985.

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