Gold refinery entrepreneur and philanthropist Benard Feni has joined the Malaria Free Uganda board, where he is expected to help mobilise private-sector funding and strengthen partnerships in the country’s drive to eliminate malaria by 2030.
Benard Feni is known for gold refining and philanthropy through Euro Gold Refinery Uganda Ltd and the Arua-based Mungu Feni Foundation. He is now taking on a role in a different field: Uganda’s fight against malaria.
Feni has been appointed by Health Minister Dr Chris Baryomunsi to the Board of Directors of Malaria Free Uganda, a national public-private initiative supporting efforts to eliminate malaria as a public health threat.
His three-year term runs from September 1, 2026, to August 31, 2029, and is renewable once under the initiative’s Board Charter.
The appointment brings business and philanthropic experience into a national effort that increasingly depends on domestic resource mobilisation, private-sector partnerships and sustained financing for malaria prevention and treatment.
So what will Feni be expected to do?
The position is voluntary and non-remunerated, although reasonable expenses incurred while performing official duties may be reimbursed. The board is scheduled to meet four times a year, alongside an annual strategy retreat and additional meetings when required.
Its responsibilities include providing strategic oversight, mobilising domestic resources, strengthening advocacy, developing partnerships and overseeing budgets, resource commitments and the performance of the initiative’s secretariat.
The secretariat will manage day-to-day operations, while technical guidance will come from the National Malaria Control Division and its working groups.
One of the initiative’s major priorities is establishing an End Malaria Fund to mobilise resources from government, businesses, civil society and community leaders to support Uganda’s national malaria strategy.
The proposed fund is intended to help address financing gaps affecting essential interventions, including the procurement and distribution of mosquito nets, medicines and diagnostic kits, while strengthening accountability for funds committed to malaria control.
Malaria Free Uganda also seeks to encourage government ministries, departments and agencies to incorporate malaria prevention and control into their plans and budgets, extending responsibility for the fight beyond the health sector.
The approach recognises that malaria affects more than health facilities and households. It also contributes to missed school days, lost working hours, treatment costs and reduced productivity, making prevention an economic as well as a public health priority.
Why Uganda needs sustained malaria financing
Uganda remains among the countries carrying a substantial share of the global malaria burden.
The World Health Organisation’s World Malaria Report 2025 estimated that 282 million malaria cases and 610,000 deaths occurred worldwide in 2024, up from an estimated 273 million cases in 2023.
The WHO African Region accounted for approximately 94% of cases and 95% of deaths.
The report identifies Uganda among five countries — alongside Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia and Mozambique — that together accounted for nearly half of global malaria cases.
Malaria is transmitted through the bites of infected female Anopheles mosquitoes. Although preventable and treatable, it can become life-threatening, particularly for young children and pregnant women, when diagnosis and treatment are delayed.
Uganda has pursued interventions including mass distribution of insecticide-treated mosquito nets, indoor residual spraying in selected districts, and community-based testing and treatment.
Sustaining these measures requires reliable supplies of medicines and diagnostic tools, continued community engagement and predictable financing.
The WHO has also reported partial resistance to artemisinin-based antimalarial medicines in Uganda, adding to the need for treatment monitoring, adherence to national guidelines and effective surveillance.
Private sector takes on a bigger role
For Malaria Free Uganda, mobilising domestic resources is intended to complement government funding and support from development partners.
Businesses can contribute through financial commitments, technical expertise, supplies, technology, training and community networks. They can also integrate malaria prevention into workplace programmes and corporate social responsibility initiatives.
The proposed End Malaria Fund is expected to provide a mechanism for coordinating such contributions and directing resources towards priorities under Uganda’s malaria strategy.
For Feni, the appointment adds a national public health responsibility to his business and philanthropic work through Euro Gold Refinery Uganda Ltd and the Mungu Feni Foundation.
The foundation has focused on supporting vulnerable communities, empowering young people and improving livelihoods, particularly in the West Nile sub-region. Its work has included community partnerships and support for disadvantaged groups.
His contribution to the board will be measured not simply by participation in meetings, but by the partnerships, resources and accountability measures that help translate national ambitions into practical interventions.
Uganda’s goal of eliminating malaria as a public health threat by 2030 will require sustained action from government, health workers, development partners, businesses and communities.
Feni’s appointment reflects the growing emphasis on involving private-sector leaders in that effort. The challenge now is to turn boardroom commitments into resources and interventions that reach households and communities most affected by the disease.