Kampala – The Speaker of Uganda’s Parliament, The Right Hon.  Alintuma Rebecca Kadaga on Wednesday officially launched the 2013 edition of the African Vaccination Week with a call on leaders to prioritize vaccination in order to save lives and promote health.

“Fellow leaders at all levels, health workers, parents, caretakers and communities should make the reversal of high number of unimmunized children our utmost priority this year”, Hon. Kadaga said at the regional launch organized at Kamuli district in eastern Uganda.

The Ugandan law maker stated that in order to reduce the high number of un immunized children, national authorities must ensure availability of vaccines at all health centers and outreach immunization posts in addition to educating communities to actively demand immunization services. 

Also speaking at the launch, the Director General of Health Services in Uganda, Dr Jane Ruth Aceng, reported that currently Uganda ranks among the top five countries in the Eastern and Southern African region with the highest numbers of unimmunized children.  She said that as of December 2012, an estimated 153,000 Ugandan children were not immunized, putting the country at risk of potential outbreaks of vaccine preventable diseases. 

In a message to the launch, the WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr. Luis Sambo, said: “This home-grown initiative has an overarching goal of strengthening immunization programmes in Africa by drawing attention to, and increasing awareness of the importance of every person’s need and right to be protected from vaccine-preventable diseases”.

He added that the ambitious goal of the exercise was captured in the theme for this year’s observance: “Save lives, Prevent disabilities, Vaccinate!”

Dr Sambo’s message was read by the WHO Representative in Uganda, Dr Wondimagegnehu Alemu.

The Regional Director stated that since the African Region started celebrating Vaccination Week three years ago, 40 countries had participated in this historic initiative, signalling to the world that immunization was a regional and national priority.

On progress in addressing vaccine-preventable diseases, he said: “We have achieved an 89% reduction in measles mortality between 2000 and 2009. The elimination of maternal and neonatal tetanus had been validated in 30 countries in the Region by the end of 2012. All countries in the Region except one have introduced Hepatitis B and Hib vaccines and the introduction of newer vaccines such as pneumococcal conjugate vaccine and rotavirus vaccines is being scaled up.'

 He added that with the vaccination of more that 103 million people with the newly developed meningococcal A meningitis conjugate vaccine in 10 endemic countries within the meningitis belt of West and Central Africa, no confirmed case of meningitis A had been reported in the area.  

Progress has also been made in the polio eradication effort, he said, pointing out that the Region had recorded a 63% reduction in the number of wild poliovirus cases from 350 cases in 12 countries in 2011 to 128 cases in just three countries in 2012, with Nigeria remaining the only endemic country in the region.

Dr. Sambo concluded his message with a plea: “My appeal to all during this week and beyond is to ensure that our immunization status is up to date and that communities understand and demand immunization services. Vaccination is as good for children as it is for adolescents, adults and senior citizens. We should all vaccinate to save lives and prevent disabilities”. 

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For more information, please contact: 
Mr Sam Ajibola email: ajibolas [at] afro.who.int

Ms Zorodzai Machekanyanga: Machekanyangaz [at] zw.afro.who.int

Mr Benjamin Sensasi: sensasib [at] ug.afro.who.int