Registration for Extensor Graduate Nurses and Midwives is set to begin
Yesterday, the Uganda Nurses and Midwives Council (UNMC) announced on this digital platform that the registration of graduate nurses and midwives whose internship was waived will begin on March 23, 2026.
The announcement indicated that the decision to register and license Extensor graduate nurses and midwives was made after consultations between the UNMC and the Ministry of Health, following the internship committee’s decision in May 2025 to waive the internship for Extensor graduate nurses and midwives.
In June 2025, the Ministry of Health, in a letter signed by the Permanent Secretary, Dr. Diana Atwine, notified the UNMC of the decision by the Human Capital Development Program Interministerial Committee on Education and Health meeting of July 2024 to waive medical internship for nurses and midwives who upgrade from Diploma to Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing and Midwifery.
However, the UNMC was reluctant to register and license Extensor graduate nurses and midwives because, according to the council, the decision to waive internship requirements contradicted existing regulatory requirements and standards, which require graduate nurses and midwives to complete a mandatory internship before being licensed.
In February 2026, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Health, Dr. Diana Atwine, registered her dissatisfaction with the UNMC in operationalizing the Human Capital Development Program Interministerial Committee on Education and Health’s resolution. This was in a letter addressed to the Registrar of the UNMC.
In the letter, Dr. Atwine directed the UNMC to present the matter to the Council Board for urgent guidance and requisite approval, issue a formal communication to all relevant stakeholders to operationalize the internship waiver without further delay, and that the UNMC should expedite the processing of all pending applications to ensure eligible practitioners are licensed in accordance with the government resolution.
Despite the directive, the UNMC was still reluctant to operationalize the resolution. This caused anxiety among the affected group, with some nurses and midwives threatening to demonstrate at the UNMC offices, as indicated on a flyer that was circulating on social media, that there was going to be a demonstration dubbed ‘no licenses – no silence’, which was scheduled for 2nd March 2026 at 10:00 am.
It is believed that the UNMC was uncomfortable with implementing a resolution that it found inconsistent with the existing regulatory requirements and standards, such as the curriculum of graduate nurses and midwives and the Health Education and Training Policy, which requires graduate nurses and midwives to do an internship.
However, based on yesterday’s notice from the UNMC, the council appears to have yielded following intensified pressure from the Ministry of Health.
The announcement informing Extensor graduate nurses and midwives of the decision to start the registration process received mixed reactions from the nurses and midwives across the board, with some excited about getting registered and licensed, and some worried about the quality of nurses and midwives going to be licensed to practice without meeting the requirements.
On X (formerly Twitter), Mr. Bisoborwa Vicent Akiiki replied to UNMC’s post, saying, “Thank you so much for this development. I personally applaud the team at UNMC for thinking about us,” Bisoborwa wrote.
On the same post, the Association of Graduate Nurses and Midwives reposted, saying, “In a sudden shift in policy, the UNMC has initiated the process for the licensure and registration of nurses and midwives on the extension program who have not completed the mandatory internship as required by current guidelines.”
According to the UNMC, 753 Extensor graduate nurses and midwives registered for temporary licensure in May 2025 before the decision to waive the internship. Mr. Ampeire Jacob, the PRO of the UNMC, said that the Council is ready to register and license all Extensor graduate nurses and midwives, irrespective of prior temporary licensure, provided they have the required documentation.