KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) – At a taxi stand in the main market in Kampala, the capital of Uganda, traders simply walk one or two lanes, get guns in their hands and run to work.
Until this week, vaccinations were mainly in hospitals in this East African country that experienced a major COVID-19 crisis earlier this year.
Currently, the international legal system is being set up in a workplace that can be pardoned in Kampala as leadership leaders work with the Red Cross until another 120,000 creatures by the end of September.
“All of this we could have done earlier, but we have not confirmed the availability of the vaccine,” said Drs. Misaki Wayengera, who is leading a team of scientists to advise officials on the response to the epidemic, talks about vaccinated areas in urban areas. “At the moment we are receiving a lot of vaccines and we should use them as much as possible.”
In addition to the 128,000 AstraZeneca varieties donated by Norway at the end of August, the United Kingdom last month donated about 300,000. China recently donated 300,000 of its Sinovac vaccines, and on Monday a group of 647,000 Moderna Medicines supplied by the United States arrived in Uganda.
Suddenly Uganda needs to improve its vaccination. The country is sometimes concerned because some doubt the safety of the AstraZeneca shot vaccine, which is no longer used in Norway due to complaints of low blood pressure among the few people who received it.
Africa has vaccinated only 3.1% of the 1.3 billion people, according to the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Health officials across Africa have said so complained loudly about the variability of the vaccine and what they see as being stored in some rich countries. Soon hundreds of millions of vaccines will be distributed in Africa through more donations by rich countries or purchased by the African Union.
Africa wants to vaccinate 60% of the continent’s population by the end of 2022, a strong entry point for global demand. The African Union, which represents 54 countries on the continent, has ordered that 400 & Johnson be tested, but the distribution of the cases is extended for 12 months because there is not enough.
COVAX, a UN-sponsored program aimed at vaccinating the world’s poorest people, said this week that his efforts continue to “be thwarted by curbing exports, prioritizing cooperation between manufacturers and countries, increasing pressures to develop products manufactured by other key manufacturers, and delays in granting patents to regulations. ”
Uganda, a country of more than 44 million people, has registered more than 120,000 cases of COVID-19, including more than 3,000 people, according to government figures. The country has provided 1.65 million shots, but only 400,000 people have received two standards, according to Heengera. Uganda’s goal is to vaccinate 5 million high-risk people, including nurses and teachers, in the near future.
At the Red Cross tent in Kampala, the demand for jabs was great. By evening only 30 out of 150 tests were left, and some who arrived later were told to return the next day.
“I came to work for a definite job, but it didn’t happen,” said salesman Sulaiman Mivule when the nurse told him he was late for the shooting that day. “I’ll be back tomorrow. It’s easy for me here because I work in this area. ”
Asked why he wanted the first shot, he said, “They tell us there could be a third wave. If it comes with a high vaccine, it probably won’t hurt us much. Prevention is better than cure.”
Mivule and others who spoke to the AP said they did not want to go to the vaccination centers at the hospitals because they hoped to find a crowd there.
Bernard Ssembatya said he was driving when he saw a white Red Cross tent and entered the jab immediately. Later, she texted her friends about the opportunity.
“I was depressed and went to the hospital,” he said. “You see a lot of people there and you don’t want to try to get in.”
However, despite the interest among many, some walked away unscathed when they were told that the vaccine they wanted was still there.
The one-time J&J vaccine, which is not available in Uganda, is frequently asked, says Jacinta Twinomujuni, a nurse at the Kampala Capital City Authority who oversees the event.
“I’m telling them, obviously, that we don’t have it,” he said. “And he says, ‘Well, let’s wait.’”