NIHDP-Costing is a cost-effectiveness study examining what it would take to sustain and scale a national, interoperable digital health data platform across Uganda's health system. It builds on earlier feasibility work that asked whether Uganda was ready for such a platform, shifting the focus from technical readiness to the economics of running it at national scale.
From feasibility to affordability
Proving a platform can work is only half the question; the other half is whether it can be sustained.
The challenge
Uganda's health system is digitising, but the long-term value and affordability of a unified national platform remain unproven.
- Technical feasibility alone does not justify national investment
- Decision-makers need cost, benefit and sustainability evidence
Our approach
The study applies cost-effectiveness methods to a sustainable, interoperable platform designed for national scaling.
- Quantify deployment, operating and maintenance costs
- Weigh costs against efficiency and health-system gains
Demonstrating that a platform is technically possible is only part of the picture — its sustainability and value at national scale must also be proven.
How the study works
01
Establish costs
Estimate what it takes to deploy, run and maintain the platform.
02
Model cost-effectiveness
Weigh those costs against expected health-system benefits.
03
Inform investment
Provide evidence to guide national digital health policy decisions.