Uganda working on producing own COVID-19 vaccine

Uganda’s President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni said production of a more effective Uganda-made COVID-19 vaccine is gearing towards advanced stages.

‘‘We are working on our vaccine. Actually our vaccine will be better than all those because it will cover all variants,’’ the president disclosed in Friday’s televised address.

Daily monitor reports that Museveni said the production of the vaccine in Uganda was delayed by lack of COVID-19 patients.

‘‘Around April, we had a problem. We did not have enough patients. Now there are plenty of patients (for trials),’’ he noted, further stating that he was in touch with several actors, worldwide, to help solve the vaccine crisis.

Adding that Uganda will by 2022 be medically autonomous after ‘‘seeing how dangerous it is to depend on others for life.’’

‘‘By the coming year, Uganda will not be dependent on outsiders for medical solutions. We shall get our own solutions, vaccines, therapeutics,’’ Museveni said.

Museveni also announced that on top of the 175,200 COVID-19 vaccines received on June 17, Uganda is expecting 688,000 AstraZeneca vaccine doses in early August.

He also announced that the government is working with Chinese embassy to bring in 300,000 doses of Sinovac vaccines, and is further discussing modalities of acquisition of more doses through direct purchase.

The President also added that they are also in discussions with African Union on terms of acquisition of the Johnson and Johnson vaccines.

As at Saturday, Uganda’s health ministry stated that the country had thus far recorded 70,176 positive coronavirus cases and 626 deaths.

A total of 821,659 people have also been vaccinated as at June 19.