ENTEBBE, UGANDA: Uganda has received a donation of 299,520 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine from the Government of UK under the dose sharing arrangement.
The contingent of the covid vaccine doses was on Thursday received by the Minister of State for Primary Health Care, Ms Margaret Muhanga. This brings a total of vaccine dozes so far received by Uganda to 2.2 million.
The vaccines received will be distributed by the National Medical Stores (NSM) to all health facilities to ensure vaccination is ongoing.
“The strategy of the government is to mass-vaccinate the eligible population of 22 million people aged 18 and above to enable us fully open up. We have nearly a million people who have got the first jab of the vaccine and 320,000 who have got both jabs,” she said while receiving the vaccines from the British High Commission at the National Medical Stores in Entebbe.
She added, “Three million vaccines promised by the British government will take us close to the most vulnerable group of 50 and above, in addition, consideration will be given to children between 12 and 18, when we get the Pfizer vaccine.”
Ms Muhanga cautioned Ugandans against spreading misinformation about the vaccines received noting that priority will still be given to teachers, the armed forces, and medical personnel for the vaccines that were received.
The Development Director at the British High Commission Mr Andrew Ockenden said Uganda will receive three million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine from the UK through the Covax facility by June next year.
“We have been pushing for equitable access to the vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics. The UK was instrumental in getting the Covax facility set up providing £548 million to get 100 million doses of the vaccines worldwide over the next year. 30 million of these doses will be shared by the end of 2021, Uganda will receive three million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine,” he said.
The Deputy UNICEF representative for operations in Uganda Ms Laura Siegrist Fouche said the arrival of the consignment is very timely as the demand for vaccination is currently exceeding the available supply of vaccines.
The NMS General Manager Mr Moses Kamabare said the vaccines will be distributed to the respective health centres according to a list generated by the Ministry of Health.
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