A pioneering idea that grew with Uganda's young people

Our beginnings

NTC's story began in 1994 at Naguru Health Centre, where a group of committed gynaecologists and volunteers recognised that adolescents needed a service designed around their realities. With early support from UNICEF, they created a place where young people could seek sexual and reproductive health information and care with dignity, privacy and respect.

At a time when adolescent health needs were often overlooked or judged, the centre demonstrated that youth-friendly care could improve trust, knowledge and service use.

From one centre to a national platform

Over the following decades, the organisation developed from a clinic into a community organisation and then a registered national NGO. Its work expanded beyond direct clinical support to include community outreach, peer education, health-systems strengthening, policy influence, social and behaviour change, safeguarding, research, digital engagement, advocacy and economic opportunity.

The organisation, formerly Naguru Teenage Information and Health Centre, is now known as Naguru Teenage Centre. Its youth-friendly service model is based at Kiswa Health Centre III and continues to inform broader programmes across Uganda.

A legacy of listening and adaptation

NTC's growth has always been shaped by young people's changing needs. Programmes have increasingly connected health with protection, education, voice, disability inclusion, livelihoods and accountability. What began as a safe place to obtain care has become a networked platform through which young people can learn, organise, access services and influence the decisions that affect their lives.

Milestones

• 1994 — NTC is established at Naguru Health Centre by gynaecologists and volunteers, with early UNICEF support.
• 2024–2027 — The SAY Programme expands inclusive SRHR and SGBV services in West Nile and Acholi.
• 2026 onward — NTC contributes to implementation under Uganda's 10th Country Programme and the SAY Plus+ scale-up.