By Brian Atuhura
Masindi district Chairperson, Cosmas Byaruhanga has called upon stakeholders to combine efforts in fighting the excessive consumption of alcohol in the district.
Cosmas says, excessive consumption of alcohol has led many employees lose thier jobs and also anumber of marriages have broken down to some extent attributed to too much drinking.
He also requested the ordinance on alcohol regulation be implemented by all stakeholders to enable it have meaningful impact in the communities.
He made the call yesterday,while addressing stakeholders during the official closure of Uganda National Association of Community and Occupational Health (UNACOH), through an exit meeting that was held at Country Inn hotel.
Addressing the same gathering,the Project Focal Person for Masindi, William Mugayo gave statistics on the alcohol problem in the district as below;56.1% of the respondents started drinking when they were under 18 years while 30.9% of the sampled drinkers reported drinking more than 5times aweek.37% of the alcohol drinkers reported having more than 5 drinks aday.20-40% of most drinkers monthly earnings was spent on alcohol consumption.30% of the alcohol drinkers had more than 10 alcohol sale points within 500meters from thier homestead.The sale points were operating for an average of 13 hours per day running for more than 19hours.11.9% of the respondents revealed that they started drinking because parents or guardians would send them to buy alcohol when still young.
Speaking as the Chief Guest,while closing the exit meeting,the Deputy Resident District Commissioner (D/RDC),Dhaala Sanon, appreciated UNACOH for regulating the consumption of alcohol in Masindi.
He however,asked development partners not to advocate for closure of alcohol brewing industries because they generate revenue to government and also employ many locals.