Refugees in Adjumani frustrate Covid-19 vaccination exercise

Adjumani, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Adjumani district authorities have expressed concern over hesitancy among South Sudan refugees, to embrace the Covid-19 vaccination campaign.

Authorities reason that the low uptake of vaccines by the refugees may affect the opening of schools next year.

The district chairman Ben Anyama, disclosed that he is dismayed to learn that only 6% of the refugee population in Adjumani have been vaccinated, yet the total population of refugees is about 213,000 residents.

Anyama said out of the cumulative number of 933 people who have so far tested positive of Covid-19 in Adjumani, 137 are refugees constituting 14 percent.

He appealed to the Office of Prime Minister-OPM and UNHCR, to increase surveillance and scale up vaccination among the refugee population in order to get the target set by the ministry of health so as to ease the lockdown.

The district health officer, Dominic Drametu, however appealed to the entire population to embrace the national wide vaccination exercise so that the government can reopen schools.

Drametu also declared that the district has received 2,100 doses of the Modena vaccine from the US, which he noted are in the same group with Pfizer and Johnson and Johnson.

Drametu said with the arrival of Modena, all persons from the age of 18 especially school going students and every person are to be vaccinated regardless of those target groups.

The Adjumani district education officer, Robert Dima, revealed that the effects of Covid-19 pandemic are biting, and has left a lot of negative impact, stating that there are rising cases of teenage pregnancy to the extent of having primary two girls getting married and pregnant.

Robert Andeyo, a settlement commandant revealed that the biggest challenge is the myth and cultural belief by the refugee communities. He said one of the new strategies is to ensure that all new refugee leaders are vaccinated for them to qualify as leaders.

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