Uganda receives additional 655,000 AstraZeneca doses to facilitate school reopening

As part of efforts to support the re-opening of schools, Belgium and French governments have donated 655,053 dozes of AstraZeneca vaccines to facilitate vaccination of teachers and eligible learners.

These hope that once teachers and eligible students are vaccinated, learners will be able to return to school safely and enjoy their right to education.

France donated 501,153 doses while Belgium donated 153,900 doses.

The French Ambassador to Uganda, Jules- Armand Aniambossou who represented the French government said at the handover that the consignment was part of the French donation of 10 million Covid-19 vaccine doses to the African Union.

“The donation is in partnership with COVAX and the African vaccine Acquisition Trust (AVAT). It is the concretization of the commitment made by the French President Emmanuel Macron at the G7 summit in Carbis Bay last June to deliver 60 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines to developing countries by the end of 2021," the Ambassador said.

The Belgian ambassador to Uganda, Rudi Veestraeten said on his part that the 153,900 doses are part of 344,800 vaccine jabs Belgium plans to donate to Uganda to contribute to stepping up the vaccination campaign for teachers and reopening schools.

"Like Uganda, Belgium has ratified the convention on the rights of the child. Under this convention, the state bears the responsibility to ensure all children's rights to education are respected. The reopening of schools in Uganda is, therefore, necessary and Belgium is pleased to directly contribute towards this goal by donating Covid-19 vaccines to the education sector," he said.

State Minister for Primary Healthcare, Margaret Muhanga received the consignment from the two country's ambassadors to Uganda, at the National Medical Stores (NMS) on Thursday.

Muhanga said that the vaccines will mainly be used to inoculate priority groups waiting for their second dose.

According to the latest data from the Health Ministry, Uganda has vaccinated at least 1.8 million people so far.

President Museveni in his last address on Covid-19 this week on Wednesday said that the government is now seeking to vaccinate at least 4.8 million people before schools and other sectors of the economy currently under lockdown can be reopened.