Embrace the COVID-19 vaccine that it is available now, Gov't urges Ugandans

Minister of ICT and National Guidance Judith Nabakooba has urged Ugandans to embrace the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine, saying scientists have assured the government that it is safe.

Uganda rolled out vaccination against COVID-19 on March 10, 2021, starting with health workers, security officers, and high-risk groups.

The process has however faced resistance with some members of the public refusing to be vaccinated, over vaccine safety concerns.

Speaking to journalists in her weekly press conference on Sunday, Nabakooba said that Ugandans have nothing to worry about because the vaccine is safe.

"Ministry of Health and all other experts have assured us that the vaccine is safe, it has so far been distributed in 11 African countries, while in Europe, millions of people have used it," Nabakooba said.

"I urge everyone to embrace the vaccine, let those involved in spreading fear and wrong information against the vaccine stop as well."

According to the latest data from the health ministry, at least 17,543 people have been vaccinated against COVID-19, as of Monday, March 22, 2021.

Uganda received a total of 964,000 initial doses and according to the health ministry, all districts have so far received their batches.

Nabakooba said that Uganda has come a long way in the fight against COVID-19, having confirmed its first positive case of the virus on March 21, 2020 - a year from now. She said that the country's promise to those that have died from the virus should be that "no one should continue to catch or die of COVID-19, now that we have all the knowledge on how to prevent and keep it away."

The country counts 40,671 confirmed cumulative cases to-date. 334 people have succumbed to the disease, while 15, 133 have recovered so far.