The Ministry of Health has announced a nationwide mass vaccination campaign against Covid-19 infection. 

The campaign which runs from May 9 to 15 is geared towards fulfilling the World Health Organisation global vision of scaling the vaccination coverage in all countries to 40% by end of this year.

“This mass immunisation will take the form of setting up and distributing vaccination sites in all communities’ base on the size of settlements. 

Vaccination teams with social mobilisers will be deployed to each site. The teams will be deployed to public places such as community “bantabas”, health facilities, schools, markets, crossing points, and any other strategic locations in the communities.

“Currently, the country has three different types of vaccines namely: Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer, and Sinopharm all of which are safe and effective in preventing severe Covid-19 infection, hospitalisation, and death. 

“The goal of this vaccination campaign is to vaccinate everybody, young and old people including children aged 12 years and above. 

“It will target eligible populations through vaccination and registration in each outlet. During the campaign, vaccination cards will be issued to any person that gets the jab. 

“The card will serve as a vaccine passport, especially for people traveling to counties requiring proof of valid Covid-19 vaccine, thus the public is urged to keep the vaccination card safely,” Modou Njai, Director of Health Promotion and Education said in a statement.

“Despite significant gains in the reduction of cases of Covid-19, the pandemic continues to be one of the biggest challenges in the last two years, therefore the Ministry of Health urges all to unite and overcome this devastating public health threat as no one is safe until we are all safe. 

“This campaign is an opportunity to achieve a lifesaving dose of immunity against the dreadful disease if the required number of people are vaccinated within the stipulated period. In this regard, we call on all within the age category to get vaccinated during the campaign,” he added.

According to him, the Ministry of Health is soliciting the continuous support and cooperation of the general public in its efforts to contain Covid-19, adding the public is encouraged to call the Ministry’s Toll-Free Number 1025 for more or other related information regarding the vaccination campaign. 

Reporting by Adama Makasuba