Skip to content
Accessibility

Find quickly

Bridging the Digital Health Gap: Strengthening Digital Health and Informatics Training in Uganda

  • SDG3
  • SDG4
  • SDG8
  • SDG17
icon_Education

Education

-
Timeframe 01.04.2025-30.11.2026 Aktiivne
Target group University faculty members (lecturers) and students
Budget 94 973 EUR
Funders
  • ESTDEV
Partners

The project aims to strengthen Uganda’s digital health workforce by directly equipping students and faculty with advanced digital health skills and ultimately contributing to enhanced healthcare systems and service delivery.

According to a report published in 2024, Estonia ranks 3rd in Europe in Digital Health, proving that the best practices, skills, and knowledge shared in this field are of exceptionally high value.  

Taking account the shortcomings identified in the Master’s in Health Informatics in Uganda and the advancements that has been made in Estonia in the field of Digital Health and the connections we share between the two universities it is evident that Estonia has a lot to offer to support the education in Uganda and by that contribute to the advancements in health care, that is a major challenge and pain point in Uganda.  

Project objectives

A project “Bridging the Digital Health Gap: Strengthening Digital Health and Informatics Training in Uganda” in proposed to support Uganda's health care system by developing Digital Health education (including ICT solutions) based on Estonia’s experience.

The direct beneficiaries are:

Faculty Members (Lecturers & Trainers) - a total of 17 lecturers from the Master of Health Informatics program will receive training, mentorship, and capacity-building support through faculty development initiatives. 

Health Informatics Students - the project will initially support 31 students from the current intake. A third cohort will join in Quarter 3 of Year 1, increasing the total number of direct student beneficiaries to approximately 50 students in the first year. Over the 2-year project duration, we anticipate benefiting four different cohorts of students which will bring the direct student beneficiaries to 70. 

Actions and results

Project Outcome 1: 

The Master’s in Health Informatics curriculum at Makerere University has been compared with Estonia’s Digital Health curriculum and enhanced by integrating best practices from Estonia’s Digital Health education. 

Project Outcome 2: 

Estonia’s national Digital Health solutions have been introduced to Uganda’s Ministry of Health, relevant universities, and the broader public, including through The Uganda National Digital Health Annual Conference.

Project Outcome 3: 

Knowledge about the field of Digital Health in Uganda has increased through the development of the Master’s in Health Informatics program at Makerere University and througj local awareness-raising activities. 

To achieve these outcomes the following elements of the project has been planned:  

  1. Mapping the current situation and needs for the Health Informatics master’s programme, as well as developing development plans based on TalTech’s Digital Health programme. 

  2. Training, mentorship, and study visits to Estonia provided by TalTech to familiarize participants with Estonia’s digital health infrastructure, Digital Health master’s programme organization, and practical learning methods such as hackathons. 

  3. Enhancing the Health Informatics master’s programme, piloting the improvements, and collecting feedback. 

  4. Increasing digital health awareness in Uganda through awareness-raising activities and the creation of publicly accessible learning materials.