The Tororo District Woman MP, Sarah Opendi (pictured) is expected to table- The Human Assisted Reproductive Technology Bill, 2023 that is intended to legalize use of In vitro fertilization (IVF) in Uganda during today’s plenary sitting that is slated to start at 2:00Pm.
The details are contained in the 5th March 2024 order paper that was posted on Parliament’s website with Opendi’s bill coming second on the items for consideration as soon as the presiding Speaker is through with their communication to the House.
According to the World Health Organisation, every human being has a right to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health, and individuals and couples have the right to decide the number, timing and spacing of their children, but infertility can negate the realization of these essential human rights.
WHO raised concern that the availability, access, and quality of interventions to address infertility remain a challenge in most countries, where diagnosis and treatment of infertility is often not prioritized in national population and development policies and reproductive health strategies are rarely covered through public health financing.
“While assisted reproduction technologies (ART) have been available for more than three decades, with more than 5 million children born worldwide from ART interventions such as in vitro fertilization (IVF), these technologies are still largely unavailable, inaccessible and unaffordable in many parts of the world, particularly in low and middle-income countries (LMIC),” noted WHO.
World Health Organisation thus called on Governments to come up with policies that could mitigate the many inequities in access to safe and effective fertility care and effectively address infertility, put in place health policies to recognize that infertility is a disease that can often be prevented, thereby mitigating the need for costly and poorly accessible treatments.
“In addition, enabling laws and policies that regulate third party reproduction and ART are essential to ensure universal access without discrimination and to protect and promote the human rights of all parties involved. Once fertility policies are in place, it is essential to ensure that their implementation is monitored, and the quality of services is continually improved,” added WHO.
Parliament is also expected to receive a report from the ICT National Guidance Committee on the operations and the performance of Uganda Broadcasting Corporation as well as receive another report from the same Committee on the petition of the National Association of Broadcasters against the presidential directive of government advertisement exclusively through UBC.
