DNA Tests Earn Government Shs.500M in Three Months.

Government has collected over Shs500M in DNA testing revenue in a space of only 3 months, as several citizens sought to establish the paternity of their kids at the height of national debate around “paternity fraud” in the country.

This was revealed by the Director of the Directorate of Government Analytical Laboratory (DGAL) Mr. Kepher Kuchana while appearing before Parliament’s Defence & Internal Affairs Committee.

Kepher said that the requests for the number of DNA tests usually increase towards school fees time as men view it a cheaper option, than paying school fees thus urging the committee to put under consideration the Forensic Evidence Bill 2024.

Director of the Directorate of Government Analytical Laboratory added that a father and a child without a mother or dead, the DNA forensic test cost Shs250,000 each, making it Shs500,000 both.

“We had a spike for the request for DNAs that is what contributed to half a billion in a space of only 3 months because there was a spike, when everybody was running, and now, this is December and in January, it is school fees, of course people are coming in for requests, it looks cheaper in a way,” said Kepher Kuchana.

In Uganda many people use various DNA tests, including paternity and prenatal testing, maternity, grandparent, and sibling tests, to establish the biological relationship between two or more individuals.