URN.Speaking at the launch of a two-day scientific symposium to mark World Hepatitis Day on Wednesday morning, Dr. Daniel Kyabayinze, an Epidemiologist in the Ministry of Health, said that they still can’t find the money to add the vaccine among the thirteen that are already being given under the routine immunization schedule.
Uganda has failed to introduce the HPV vaccine for newly born babies, five years after adopting the recommendation to introduce the much-needed jab that experts say is vital for cutting among others the high rates of cervical cancer and Hepatitis B (HEP B).
Speaking at the launch of a two-day scientific symposium to mark World Hepatitis Day on Wednesday morning, Dr. Daniel Kyabayinze, an Epidemiologist in the Ministry of Health, said that they still can’t find the money to add the vaccine among the thirteen that are already being given under the routine immunization schedule.
While it’s unclear how much money they need for sure, the Epidemiologist told URN that they are still speaking to donors including GAVI the Vaccines Alliance to see whether they can fund the initiative since guidelines and all the other needed paperwork have been finalized.
Meanwhile, as the government still struggles to have babies vaccinated early on, other initiatives such as vaccination of adolescent girls have hit challenges that came with COVID-19 restrictions.
The jabs for adolescent girls are supposed to be given at school and according to Kyabayinze, the two years of school closure meant that those that needed their second and third doses couldn’t get it including those that were getting vaccinated for the first time.
The Ministry of Health has now resumed vaccination. In a survey conducted in 2016, it was reported that the prevalence of Hep B infection among adults aged between 15 and 64 years stands at 4.1 percent, which means four in a hundred people are living with the virus that can cause liver cancer.
In children of 14 years and below, prevalence is low at 0.6 percent which is why experts are recommending early vaccination to counter infection. According to Kenneth Kabagambe, the Executive Director of the National Organization for People Living with Hepatitis B, the government should do more than roll out HPV vaccines.
He says awareness about HEP B is still very low and yet those that test positive cannot afford all the necessary tests required to be enrolled in care.
He says some of the tests are not done free of charge at the government health facilities.
