The Kisoro district Health Officer (DHO), Dr. Steven Nsabiyumva has said that over 80% of Kisoro’s target population has been fully vaccinated against covid-19 pandemic.
This was revealed today during a press briefing at the Kisoro district council hall to aid a survey by UNICEF on covid-19 uptake rate in Uganda.
According to Dr. Nsabiyumva, over 139,000 people have been vaccinated with the first dose, 120,000 people with a second dose while those who have been vaccinated with a booster dose are not yet established out of a 148,000 target population adding that Kisoro district has only registered one covid-19 positive case this year.
The Kisoro district assistant DHO, Dusabe Annette told UNICEF officials that timely release of funds from the ministry of health to support health workers and mass mobilization by the district taskforce leadership is the major causes of improved uptake.
The Kisoro Hospital Medical Superintendent Michael Baganizi commended UNICEF for supporting Kisoro hospital during the pandemic with Personal Protective gears, Wash facilities including water tanks and taps at every department in the hospital which helped in controlling covid-19 spread.
The UNICEF chief of field officers, Lomma Philips Limlim commended the solidarity that has been exhibited by the Kisoro district leadership in the fight against covid-19. He noted that UNICEF has spent over 550 million shillings in disease control especially Ebola in Kisoro.
Speaking to media, the Ministry of health’s spokesperson Emmanuel Ainebyona asked other districts to emulate Kisoro as vaccine uptake is concerned if Uganda must achieve its targeted 80% of Uganda’s population. He promised to address all challenges being faced by the health sector in Kisoro district to the ministry of health leadership.
The UNICEF Spokesperson in Uganda, Ntabadde Catherine said that the major purpose of the survey is to understand how different districts in Uganda responded to covid-19 vaccination. She noted that UNICEF has been supporting Uganda at the national level and at the local government level and will continue to do so. She noted that Kisoro and Rukungiri districts were chosen as pilot districts of the survey and findings will spur more support from UNICEF.
Meanwhile, 14,006,743 people have been vaccinated with the first dose in Uganda, 9.1 million people with the second dose while 5.1 million people have been vaccinated with Johnson and Johnson type of vaccine.
