Human rights activist and former Minister of Ethics and Integrity Miria Matembe has questioned the government’s commitment to suicide prevention, accusing public institutions of failing to demonstrate sufficient accountability and political will to address the problem.
Matembe said the absence of senior government officials, including permanent secretaries, from a discussion on suicide prevention raised questions about whether the government was prepared to implement policies and commitments made to protect people experiencing mental health challenges.
“If we can be here talking about things of paradigm, decision quality, whatever, who is the implementer?” Matembe asked. “If the implementer is not here, can we say that we are serious?”
She was speaking at the 1st African Regional Summit on Suicide Prevention 2026, where she challenged government agencies and Parliament to move beyond discussions and translate commitments into concrete action through legislation, funding and accessible services.
Matembe argued that suicide prevention should be treated as a human rights obligation requiring coordinated action by government ministries, local authorities, health workers and other institutions.
She criticised what she described as weak parliamentary oversight of government expenditure and implementation, saying legislators should scrutinise how public funds are used instead of concentrating on passing policies.
“The role of Parliament is to scrutinise expenditure and oversee implementation, not only pass policies,” she said.
Matembe questioned whether ministers were being adequately held accountable by parliamentary committees, arguing that public officials should explain how funds allocated to programmes are spent and what results they achieve.
She challenged lawmakers to use their oversight powers to demand answers from government officials and ensure that money allocated to mental health and suicide prevention reaches intended beneficiaries.
Her remarks come amid calls for stronger mental health services and suicide prevention measures, with the conference seeking commitments on policies, institutional responsibilities and practical interventions.
Matembe said ministries and local governments needed to coordinate activities across health, education, social welfare, justice and community services to ensure people experiencing distress could access appropriate support.
She also called for a national suicide prevention strategy with clearly defined responsibilities, timelines and a whole-of-government approach.
The proposed strategy, she said, should integrate mental health services into primary healthcare, establish referral pathways and strengthen crisis response and continuity of care.
Matembe urged the government to train health workers, teachers, police officers, social workers and community leaders to respond to people experiencing mental health difficulties in humane and rights-respecting ways.
She also called for the collection of reliable data, with safeguards to protect privacy, to help identify communities and groups being left behind.
She proposed annual public progress reports covering government funding, access to services, waiting times, geographical coverage and outcomes.
According to Matembe, progress should not be measured only by the number of suicide cases prevented but also by whether institutions protect people’s rights and remove barriers to care.
She further urged Parliament to ensure that the laws and policies needed to protect people experiencing mental health challenges are enacted and properly funded.
“Ugandans have no other voice that is effectual, that is financed, that is facilitated than you, the parliamentarians,” she told legislators, urging them to speak out when citizens suffer.
Matembe also recounted what she described as an abduction from her home, saying she was troubled that the incident had not been raised in Parliament during the period she was missing. Her account was presented as an example of what she considers inadequate political attention to citizens’ suffering.
She said leaders should not remain silent when people’s rights are violated, particularly when they are entrusted with public resources and responsibility for representing citizens.
Matembe argued that Uganda should also examine its domestic resources rather than relying heavily on external funding to address social challenges.
She urged participants to ensure that discussions at the conference resulted in concrete proposals for laws, policies and financing that could be taken to decision-makers.
“We must do all that we can to protect ourselves,” she said, calling for suicide prevention to be approached from a human rights perspective.
Matembe warned that conferences would have limited value if their recommendations were not followed by implementation, adequate funding and accountability.
She called on Parliament and government institutions to turn the conference’s deliberations into action that improves access to support and protects people experiencing mental health difficulties.