Yellow Fever mass vaccination rolled out in schools

By Ben Musanje

2^nd April 2024

The Ministry of Health has rolled out a mass preventive yellow fever vaccination campaign in 53 districts.

In Kampala, the vaccination exercise has been conducted in schools and various health centers though it is also in other regions of Ankole, Masaka and Moroto from Tuesday 2^nd April to 8^th April 2024.

The vaccination exercise is targeting more than 14.4 million persons aged 12 months up to 60 years including the refugee population.

According to Emmanuel Ainebyoona, the Ministry of Health spokesperson, the campaign is intended to boost the immunity of Ugandans against the disease.

Many schools have reported an outbreak of the disease even forcing parents to take their children for further medication.

The Minister for Health Dr Jane Ruth Aceng is expected to officially launch the campaign on April 4 in Buikwe district.

Uganda is a high-risk country for yellow fever transmission due to less than 10 per cent of the population being immunized against it, with sporadic outbreaks occurring every 3 to 5 years.

Around 24 percent of Ugandans which is approximately 44 million in total live in urban areas with roughly half of those living in slums.

Urban outbreaks of yellow fever in densely populated areas with low population immunity and often with poor sanitation can have catastrophic consequences.

Yellow fever is transmitted by the Aedes Aegypti or Haemagogus mosquito species and outbreaks in Uganda originate mainly from sylvatic, or jungle, transmission.

Mosquitoes acquire the virus by feeding on infected primates and then bite humans during agricultural and other activities in forested areas.

Humans can then carry the virus to other areas, including urban centers, where it is spread by mosquitoes from human to human.