By AFAYO SHADRACH BETHEL

The government has said mass vaccination of children aged 12 to 17 against Covid-19 will start on August 22 to contain the pandemic and guarantee continuity of learning.

This was revealed by Dr Michael Baganizi, the deputy manager of the Uganda National Expanded Program on Immunisation in an interview yesterday. where he said more than 1.2 million children in that age bracket have so far been vaccinated with the target being 6.6 million.

Baganizi added that the drive that runs from August 22 to september 3 is to give children who were in boarding school the opportunity to be vaccinnated.

However, some parents and activists have raised concern over the safety of the vaccines, with some saying the risks of the adverse reactions after vaccination outweigh the benefits.
But the Ministry of Health said the argument is false, malicious and lacking in substance.

Prof David Serwadda, the head of the government vaccine advisory committee, said the initial campaign prioritised adults (18 years and above) because vaccines were scarce.