Health Spending as Economic Misallocation: Evidence from and for Uganda

This policy-oriented study examines health spending as a form of economic misallocation, comparing Uganda’s modest per capita expenditure with the United States and regional peers. It analyzes productivity losses, incentive distortions in mixed systems, and the food-pharma nexus, while highlighting Uganda’s advantages in livestock resources and entrepreneurship. Key recommendations include tax reductions on local production and the flagship “Ugandan Sport Shoe” initiative leveraging Maasai craftsmanship. The paper advocates prevention through nutrition and physical activity, fiscal prudence, and national sovereignty over high-spending imported models. A follow-up to the author’s prior work on health as the foundation of prosperity.