President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni and the First Lady Janet Kataaha Museveni have today June 3, 2021 received their second COVID-19 vaccination jabs completing the recommended dose by the health experts.
In a statement released by the Presidential Press Unit, Museveni was vaccinated today at State Lodge Nakasero by officials from the ministry of health.
“I urge Ugandans to get vaccinated. We started with the high-risk groups like health workers, teachers, security and people with comorbidities. Our target is to cover over four million people,” Museveni said.
According to the World Health Organisation, for some COVID-19 vaccines, two doses are required. For vaccines that require two doses, the first dose presents antigens- proteins that stimulate the production of antibodies to the immune system for the first time. Scientists call this priming the immune response.
The second dose acts as a booster, ensuring the immune system develops a memory response to fight off the virus if it encounters it again. The President assured Ugandans that vaccines are safe and effective but urged them to continue wearing masks, washing hands with soap and water, sanitizing, ensuring good ventilation indoors, physically distancing and avoiding crowds to minimise the transmission.
Museveni’s appeal comes at a time when there has been a spike in the numbers of COVID-19 cases recorded in recent weeks. Many Ugandans had started to live their lives normally thinking that the virus no longer poses any threat.
However, according to records from the Ministry of health, the country was hit by new variants from India and South Africa which spread more rapidly and also adversely affect young people unlike the first variants. Daily COVID-19 updates from the Ministry of Health show that there are currently 1,083 new cases pushing to 49,759 cumulative cases. Of these, 522 are active cases at Health facilities, while 47,760 have recovered.
About 365 people have so far succumbed to the virus whose first case was reported in Uganda in March last year.