The Ugandan government has announced plans to integrate mental health and well-being into national workplace policies, in a move aimed at promoting safer, more productive, and supportive work environments across the country’s private and public sectors.
The announcement was made by Patrick Mugisha, the Commissioner for Business Development and Quality Assurance at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives, during a breakfast meeting held at the Imperial Royale Hotel in Kampala.
The meeting was organized by Mental Health Uganda, in partnership with EcoBank Uganda and the Ministry of Trade, as part of activities marking World Mental Health Month.
Mugisha said the Ministry is working on deliberate strategies to ensure that mental wellness becomes a key pillar of Uganda’s labour and business environment, particularly within micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
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“As the Ministry of Trade, we are opening a new chapter on what mental health and well-being mean in the private sector,” Mugisha said.
“We appreciate the role of the private sector in Uganda’s economic aspirations, and we want to support them through policy frameworks and strategies that promote mental health.”
He revealed that the Ministry plans to establish a dedicated help desk on mental health and well-being to support both civil servants and MSMEs, providing technical and advisory support on workplace wellness.
“We can’t just be profit-oriented and ignore the anguish behind the brands,” Mugisha emphasized. “Let the happiness of the brand cascade to the happiness of the faces around it.”
According to Mugisha, the Ministry–working with Mental Health Uganda–is also exploring the development of a national standard on workplace mental health and well-being, to be certified by the Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) and integrated into the country’s labour laws.
“We need to define what a policy on mental health and well-being at work should look like,” he said. “Together with Mental Health Uganda, we shall define this and hopefully develop a Uganda Standard to guide enforcement.”
He further noted that mental health needs vary across industries, calling for sector-specific approaches.
“Mental health and decent work in oil and gas might differ from agriculture or education,” Mugisha explained. “We need to go back to the drawing board and define what mental well-being means for each sector.”
Mugisha also called for greater collaboration between government, civil society, and the private sector to create decent workplaces that uphold both productivity and humanity.
“Uganda’s manufacturing sector still relies heavily on human labour. So at the end of the day, let’s ensure decent work–good pay, good social protection, and a mentally healthy environment,” he said.
Derrick Mbuga Kizza, Executive Director of Mental Health Uganda, said the lack of mental health policies has left many employees vulnerable to stigma, discrimination, and job insecurity.
“Most of our time is spent at work, so the workplace must be a safe space for all of us,” said Kizza.
“Employers need to adopt policies that provide reasonable accommodation for workers with mental health challenges instead of using it as a ground for dismissal.”
He urged organizations to integrate “reasonable accommodation” adjustments that help employees with mental health conditions perform effectively into their human resource frameworks.
“Disclosure should come with support, not punishment,” he added. “A strong policy protects both the employer and the employee.”
Gloria Nalubowa, Head of Human Resource at EcoBank Uganda, said wellness should be treated as a strategic business investment, not just a welfare initiative.
“You cannot speak about mental health in isolation of overall employee wellness,” Nalubowa said.
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“Investing in wellness delivers strong returns–research shows that 89% of employees in companies with wellness programs recommend their employers.”
She urged businesses to introduce employee assistance programs, flexible work arrangements, and financial wellness initiatives, arguing that such measures improve performance and reduce turnover.
“Let’s put some budget behind these initiatives the same way we do for marketing,” she said. “If human capital is your greatest asset, then mental wellness should be a strategic priority.”
Experts at the meeting agreed that mental health must be institutionalized through policy, not treated as a one-off theme during commemorative days.
“We can’t talk about productivity and competitiveness when workers are silently battling distress,” said Mbuga. “A mentally healthy workforce is a productive workforce.”
