Conservation Through Public Health
Conservation Through Public Health
Location : Email : supporter@ctph.org

About Us

Conservation is rooted in earning the support of the local communities who share a backyard with some of the most biodiverse wildlife in the world. Many of the most isolated and impoverished families live around protected areas in Africa—their lifestyles imposing an imminent threat to the survival of wildlife and habitats and eventually, themselves. Land encroachment, competition for food, and the spread of zoonotic disease between people, wildlife and livestock are all grim everyday realities.

In 1996, the first scabies outbreak in the gorillas of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, resulted in the death of an infant gorilla and the rest of the gorilla group recovered with Ivermectin treatment. The fatal disease was traced back to the local communities living around Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. A few years later in 2001 and 2002, another scabies outbreak occurred, fortunately there were no deaths because the gorillas were treated soon enough.

Mountain gorillas are endangered and with only 1,063 remaining in the wild, Dr. Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka asked herself how their extinction could be prevented. What resulted was the founding of Conservation Through Public Health (CTPH) with other concerned Ugandans. CTPH is a non-profit, non-governmental organization with an innovative methodology that focuses on the interdependence of wildlife and human health in and around Africa’s protected areas. CTPH has three integrated strategic programs: Wildlife Conservation, Community Health and Alternative Livelihoods. Poverty alleviation and improving rural public health will contribute to greater biodiversity conservation and sustainable development in and around Africa’s protected areas.

In the legacy of the late Dian Fossey, Dr. Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka has become one of the leading conservationists and scientists working to save the critically endangered mountain gorillas of East Africa. She is founder and Chief Executive Officer of Conservation Through Public Health (CTPH), a 16-year old nonprofit organization that promotes conservation by improving the quality of life of people and wildlife to enable them to coexist in and around protected areas in Africa. She became an

Ashoka Fellow in 2007 for merging Uganda’s wildlife management and rural public health programs to create common resources for both people and animals.Dr. Gladys trained as a veterinarian at the University of London’s Royal Veterinary College. Between 1996 and 2000, she set up the first Veterinary Unit at the Uganda Wildlife Authority. From 2000 to 2003, she completed a zoological medicine residency and masters in specialized veterinary medicine at North Carolina State University and North Carolina Zoological Park. Prior to setting up CTPH she also did a certificate in Non-profit management from Duke University. Most recently in 2016, she completed an MBA in Global Business and Sustainability – Social Entrepreneurship Track.

Her most recent awards include the 2017 World Wildlife Day Award from the Ministry of Tourism, Wildlife and Antiquities (MTWA) for outstanding contribution to conservation in Uganda and 2017 Golden Jubilee Award from the President of Uganda for distinguished service to the nation as a veterinarian and conservationist on International Women’s Day.

Other awards include San Diego Zoo’s 2008 “Conservation in Action Award,” the 2009 Whitley Gold Award for outstanding leadership in grassroots nature conservation; 2011 Wings World Quest Women of Discovery Humanitarian Award, and 2014 CEO Communications Africa’s Most Influential Women in Business and Government Award in Medicine and Veterinary category.

Under her leadership, Conservation Through Public Health won the Global Development Network 2012 Japanese Most Innovative Development Project Award for scaling social service delivery.

Dr. Gladys recently became a National Geographic Explorer and winner of the Sierra Club’s 2018 EarthCare Award. 2019 Finalist for the Tusk Award for Conservation in Africa ,the 2020 Uganda Veterinary Association World Veterinary Day Award and the 2020 Aldo Leopold award. She is on the leadership council of Women for the Environment in Africa.

Stephen Rubanga is a Co-Founder and Chief Veterinary Technician at CTPH. He has a diploma and certificates in laboratory technology and animal health and husbandry. Before working at CTPH, Stephen worked for 20 years as a veterinary technician at the Ugandan Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries. He oversees the field laboratory at the Gorilla Health and Community Conservation Centre; and training community members and VHCTs to manage the health and husbandry of livestock and manage livestock enterprises and VSLAs. He holds a diploma from East African Commercial School in Uganda, as well as, veterinary certifications and specialized training from Central Veterinary Laboratory Weybridge in the United Kingdom and Instituto Zooprofilatico Sperimental in Teramo, Italy.
Lawrence Zikusoka is Founder and ICT Director at CTPH. He has more than 15 years of international cross-function experience in the telecom industry with a special focus on emerging markets in Africa, Middle East and Asia.

Lawrence was inspired to set up the 1st award winning CTPH Telecenters in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park (2006) and Queen Elizabeth National Park (2007) based on his ICT volunteer experience with United Nations Information Technology Service at UNDP Hub in Orissa, India (2003).

In 2006, Lawrence Zikusoka was awarded the Reuters Digital Vision Fellowship Award at Stanford University, USA. CTPH Telecenter at Bwindi was a Finalist at the Stockholm Challenge Award (2006) and Winner, World Summit Awards for Inclusion and Empowerment (2007).

Lawrence has since served as Advisor, Gorilla Conservation Coffee, a CTPH social enterprise that supports smallholder farmers around Bwindi, home to the endangered mountain gorillas.

CTPH representative for One Health National Disease Communications System, Uganda.

Project and Program Manager at Ericsson for Tigo Rwanda, Djezzy Algeria, Zain South Sudan, STC Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, DU United Arab Emirates, Airtel Nigeria, Telma Madagascar, MTN Congo and MTN Uganda accounts.

Advisor, Youth Peacemaker Network with UNESCO, PeaceEarth, Ericsson and Zain, South Sudan.

Advisor, Refugee Connectivity Pilot with GSMA, UNHCR, Ericsson and MTN, Uganda.

Expert Panel, WSIS World Summit Award at United Nations ITU, Switzerland.

International Telecommunications Policy (MS Graduate) Researcher, UN Mission in Kosovo.

Co-Founder, Mobile Monday (MoMo) Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Co-Founder and CEO, International Airtime Top Up. The service allows people and businesses to access International Airtime, Mobile Money and Bank Transfers or Cash Pick Up in over 150 destination countries supported.

Lawrence holds a Master of Science in Telecommunications from State University of New York Institute of Technology, USA. He has attended the Executive Education in Social Entrepreneurship program at INSEAD Business School, France.

Mary Leakey is the Development Director at CTPH. After graduating from the University of London’s School of Oriental and African Studies with a BA in Development Studies and Geography, Mary moved to Zimbabwe where she worked for four years for SAfAIDS in a number of different roles, including as the New Business Manager for the Zimbabwe Country Officer.

She later moved to Cambodia and then Uganda, primarily working in the health field, with a focus on family planning, reproductive health and HIV. A Kenyan by birth, Mary established a non-profit organisation, ‘Africa Goal’, in 2006 which capitalises on the excitement around football to provide HIV services and information, including HIV testing, to people in remote and high HIV prevalence areas in East and Southern Africa. Joining the CTPH team provides an opportunity to focus on two of her passions – public health and conservation!

Bukenya Kaamu is the Finance and Administration Manager for CTPH.  He holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration (Finance and Accounting) of Uganda Martyrs University and diploma in business administration (Finance and Accounting) of Makerere University Business School.

He has over 6 years’ experience in Finance and administration, and before joining Conservation Through Public Health on 1st April 2019 he worked for Marie Stopes Uganda for five years since 2013 as the Outreach Operations officer for one year, Finance Officer for two years and Finance Assistant for two years.

As a finance Manager at CTPH, Bukenya Kaamu is responsible for budget and cash flow monitoring, working capital management, financial reporting, financial control and risk management, policy developments and compliance. He is also responsible for managing the office administration to ensure smooth running of the organization.


Richard Bagyenyi is a Program Coordinator at CTPH. He went to Bubaare Secondary School for UCE and UACE between 2004/7 and 2008/9 respectively. He later joined Makerere University in 2010 where he graduated with a Bachelor of Environmental Science in 2014. In June 2014, he joined CTPH as a volunteer specializing in Social Media. As a Program Coordinator, he is responsible for supporting the team in planning and coordination of programs and activities as well as providing administrative and IT support for the smooth running of CTPH programs and to ensure effective communication and marketing for CTPH. He also coordinates logistics for students and donors.

Ebenezer Paul is the Monitoring and Evaluation Officer at CTPH.  He went to Bweranyangyi Junior Primary School for his Primary and Ntare School for his entire secondary level education (six years) from 2010 to 2015. He later joined the School of Statistics at Makerere University in 2016 where he graduated with a Bachelors’ Degree of Science in Quantitative Economics (Statistics, Mathematics and Applied Economics) in January 2020.

He joined CTPH as a data clerk in 2019. Currently as an M&E officer, he is responsible for developing and maintaining M&E frameworks and systems, management of all CTPH databases, monitoring field activities, supporting proposal development, data analysis for project impact monitoring reports both for internal use and donor reporting.

Ssali Ronald Ogwal is the Community Health and Conservation Officer at Conservation Through Public Health- CTPH.  He holds a Post Graduate Certificate in (Global Health at Human-Animal-Ecosystem Interface) of the University of Geneva, Holds a Bachelors’ degree in (Public Health-Health Promotion) of Uganda Martyrs University, and Diploma in (Public Health Sciences) of Institute of Health Sciences.

Ssali Ronald Ogwal is a detail-oriented and analytical Public Health Specialist with more than 6 years of experience in Public Health Promotion, Field & Research related activities with exposure to having worked with both government and non-governmental institutions in the Central, Northern, and Karamoja regions of Uganda.

Having joined CTPH in 2021, as a Community Health and Conservation Officer, Ssali Ronald Ogwal is responsible for; Implementation of community field programs, Participating in One Health research, Managing, training, and supervising the community’s initial point of contact such as Village Health and Conservation Teams (VHCTs), Community Conservation Animal Health Workers (CCAHWs) and Community Wildlife Scouts (CWS), and also being the link between the community, partners and CTPH on issues regarding the conservation, community health and livelihoods improvement.

Annaclet Ampeire is a Laboratory/Wildlife Health Technician at Conservation Through Public Health (CTPH). He is from the Bwindi local community. Annaclet has extensive knowledge and experience in laboratory analysis, with a special focus on One Health issues, and gorilla health monitoring.

He is passionate about wildlife and laboratory work and using these skills to monitor the health of endangered mountain gorillas.

As a Laboratory Technician, he is responsible for monitoring of 270 mountain gorillas from all 22 habituated gorilla groups of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, recording clinical signs, collecting gorilla faecal samples from their night nests and analyzing them at the Gorilla Health and Community Conservation Centre (formerly called the Gorilla Research Clinic).

He also works with CTPH researchers and students and trains them to collect gorilla faecal samples non-invasively, from their night nests. He also analyzes samples from people and livestock who share a habitat with gorillas to check for the diseases that they may be sharing enabling them to be addressed in time. He enjoys welcoming visitors to the Gorilla Health and Community Conservation Centre and showing them how to analyze samples from gorillas. In addition, he shares with visitors about the work that CTPH does with the Bwindi local community members, improving community and livestock health and building awareness of the risks of zoonotic disease transmission which is essential to preventing the spread of disease.

Mr Nelson Okello is an Accountant at CTPH. He holds an East African certificate of Education and East African Advanced Certificate of Education obtained in 1971 and 1973 respectively. He also holds a Diploma in Local Government Administration and Level 3 of Accounts Technician Certificate.

He has served in different capacities in the Ministry of Local Government at Entebbe Municipal Council as an Accounts Assistant, Senior Accounts Assistant, and Acting Internal Auditor from 1975 to 2010.

Currently he is a member of school management committee of Entebbe Children with Disabilities School, which is a government aided school.

As an accountant at CTPH, he is responsible for receiving and compiling requisitions and forwarding them to the Finance and Administration Manager (FAM) for checking before approval by the CEO. He also writes cheques for approved requisitions, makes various payments and follows up accountabilities from staff. He also files payment vouchers and makes monthly bank reconciliations and provides figures to the FAM for reporting purposes.

Walter Odokorwot is a Human Wildlife Conflict Resolution Coordinator at Conservation Through Public Health (CTPH). Walter joined CTPH in 2020 after working for more than 25 years with Uganda Wildlife Authority as a Law-enforcement, Tourism and Community Conservation Warden in most protected areas of Uganda.  Walters role in CTPH include supporting communities to manage Human-Wildlife Conflict and establishing Conservancies. Walter obtained his skills in wildlife management from a number of institutions around the world, including Center for Protected Area Management Colorado State University, EarthSkill Network, IIED, International Law Enforcement Academy, Sustainability Challenge Foundation and Center for Conservation Peacebuilding.

His outstanding contribution towards Community Conservation earned him a number of awards including Human-Wildlife Conflict Coexistence, Karamoja Conservation Award and African Ranger Paradise Foundation for endeavor in the Cause of Wildlife Conservation.

Walter holds Master Degree in Business Administration from Gulu University after obtaining a bachelor in Conflict Resolution and Peacebuilding from Kampala International University.


Stella Mboneko is a senior six graduate from the Basongora community of Hamukungu Village, a largely pastoral community and one of the most marginalized around QENP, she is in charge of the QENP Telecentre operations, including supervising the Gorilla Conservation coffee shop, coordinating computer training and putting tourists and community members on the internet.
Jane Rose is a senior four graduate from the Bakonjo community of Kikorongo, one of the most marginalized communities around Queen Elizabeth National Park. She is in charge of the Gorilla Conservation coffee shop, serving coffee to tourists visiting the Queen Elizabeth National Park Telecentre operations, of which proceeds go directly to the community projects around the park.

What we do

OVERVIEW

Strategic Objectives
  • Promote conservation of gorillas through gorilla health and habitat conservation
  • Promote a One Health and Population, Health and Environment (PHE) approach to addressing some of the most pressing public health and environmental concerns in and around protected areas in Africa.
  • Monitor and track zoonotic disease transmissions between wildlife, humans and livestock to prevent outbreaks of deadly diseases.
  • Empower local communities, with a special focus on women, to be stewards of their environment and to practice health seeking behavior through the VHCT model.
  • Create sustainable income and improve livelihoods for community volunteers through income generating projects and Village and Savings Loan Associations.
  • Identify and cultivate sustainable sources of funds to continue running CTPH programs.
  • Advocate for One Health and PHE approaches to be institutionalized into policies at the regional, national and multilateral level.
Milestones
  1. Analyzing over 6,000 gorilla fecal samples at Bwindi Impenetrable National Park for diseases that they could be sharing with people, livestock and other wildlife, which has reduced cross species disease transmission.
  2. Conducting behavior change communication to more than 25,000 rural residents through home visits on family planning methods, hygiene, and infectious diseases that can be transmitted between people, wildlife, and livestock; a third of the homes having regular “interactions” with gorillas.
  3. Developing the first innovative flip charts for peer education on the “gorilla conservation through public health message”, on ecofriendly sisal based grain sacks.
  4. Educating more than 7,000 Bwindi community members about the links between conservation, public health, ecotourism, and sustainable livelihoods through community drama workshops, brochures and five health message signposts.
  5. Creating 444 Village Health and Conservation Team (VHCT) community volunteer networks around Bwindi Impenetrable, Budongo Forest, Virunga and Mount Elgon National Parks improving the health of people and animals, and their conservation attitudes. Fifty percent of our VHCTs are women, supporting increased female leadership roles within the communities around the protected areas in which we work.
  6. Starting the third pilot Community Based Depo-Provera project in Uganda of three monthly interval contraception injections given by trained CTPH community health volunteers through a partnership with FHI360, ensuring better compliance of women on this contraception, which eventually became a national policy.
  7. Increasing the number of women on modern family planning from 20% to 60%, above the 30% Uganda national average, 50% of whom are from villages bordering the park and visited by gorillas
  8. Increasing the number of hand washing facilities of homes bordering Bwindi Impenetrable National Park from 10% to 60%, of which 30% of the homes border the park and considered at higher risk for human/gorilla interaction including disease transmission.
  9. Enrolling more than 50 individuals living around Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in TB treatment (implementing Community Based Direct Observation of Treatment methods) increasing TB case detection and treatment success above the national average.
  10. Training 70 Conservation Community Animal Health Workers (CCAHWs) including pastoralist community volunteers around Queen Elizabeth and Pian Upe Wildlife Reserve in Eastern Uganda, in animal and human disease issues and human/wildlife conflict resolution thus empowering community conservation leaders and promoting sustainable livelihoods.
  11. Providing opportunities for more than 3,000 people in rural local communities to access internet services for conservation and health education purposes.
  12. Training more than 200 rural youth, 40% women, in basic computer applications at our two remote solar-powered Telecentres.
Strategic Programs

CTPH has three strategic programs to reduce threats to the endangered mountain gorillas, other wildlife and their habitats: gorilla conservation, One Health and alternative livelihoods. We achieve these programs through delivering services that improve wildlife, livestock and community health and conservation education through peer-to-peer education and community-based behavior change communication. We also conduct research and advocacy to achieve our goals.


Company Information
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Contact Email: supporter@ctph.org
Contact Phone: +(256) 787 662 346
URL https://ctph.org/
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Address1: Plot 3 Mapeera Lane, Uringi Crescent, Entebbe, P.O Box 75298 Clock Tower, Uganda
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