The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The National Medical Stores (NMS) has so far delivered 93,360 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccines to 94 districts across the country.
These are part of the 175,200 doses of the AstraZenca vaccine, Uganda received last week from the French government.
Sheila Nduhukire, the NMS spokesperson says the agency dispatched 117,520 vaccine doses to 135 districts and their trucks have so far delivered doses to 94 districts. These districts include Kwania, Wakiso, Lamwo, Kole, Alebtong and Oyam.
Nduhukire says the rest of the doses are expected to be delivered to districts including Kampala by the weekend. Kampala will receive 57,480 doses on Friday.
Meanwhile, Matthias Lugolobi, the Wakiso District Health Officer (DHO) says the district received 5,370 doses from NMS yesterday. In the last three months, over 51,000 people got vaccinated in Wakiso district. Of these, 5,000 have been fully vaccinated. The district has 52 immunisation centres including Entebbe Regional Referral Hospital, Kajjansi health centre IV, Kisubi hospital and Doctors’ hospital, Seguku.
Lugolobi says priority will be given to health workers who have not been vaccinated and also people due for the second dose.
Dr. John Kalyesubula, the Entebbe Municipal Medical Officer says 5,958 people got vaccinated at Entebbe Hospital. Of these, 1,726 had got the second dose by the time the hospital run out of vaccine doses in early June.
Lugolobi says his team will distribute the doses according to how many people received their first jab 12 weeks ago. “We do not know how many health workers will turn up for vaccination. But we shall ensure vaccination resumes in all centres next week, with priority given to such health workers and those due for the second dose,” Lugolobi said.
Lugolobi adds that the district team is yet to determine how many people are due for their second dose in the district. “By Monday, we will know the number because it will influence how much vaccination centres will receive,” he added.
On Wednesday, the programme manager of Uganda National Expanded Programme on Immunization, Dr. Alfred Driwale said only people who received their first jab 12 weeks ago or have made three months will get the vaccine.
He explained that the first group of people who received their second dose late last month and early this week got the jab after eight weeks because the doses are expected to expire by July 10th, 2021. Dr. Driwale however says this time round this will not be possible because the country only has few doses.
Uganda has received a total of 1,139,200 COVID-19 vaccine doses since March from the COVAX facility and the Indian government, with the latest batch of 175,200 doses that arrived last week from France. However, from the 964,000 doses received in the last three months, over 840,000 people have so far been vaccinated.
Uganda is expected to receive another batch of 688,000 vaccine doses in August.
Also, Uganda gave UNICEF US$ 11million, about Shillings 38 billion to procure COVID-19 vaccines through the COVAX facility, with the aim of vaccinating 21 million people in a phased manner.
The country will receive a total of 8 million doses from the COVAX facility as donations and will procure the remaining doses using the money it has given to UNICEF.
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