Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni on Thursday announced said schools in the country will get reopened early next year regardless of currently low vaccination uptake, reported Africa News. The schools have been shut since March 2020 owing to the coronavirus pandemic.
“Be informed that the schools will be opened in January and the rest of the economy will be opened in the same month,” Museveni said.
He said vaccination is crucial for the reopening of the economy, irrespective of the fact that fewer than three million jabs have been administered in population size of roughly 45 million.
Museveni said the country has enough vaccines in stock and is expecting more vaccines by year-end. He stated that currently, 4.7 million vaccines are available in the country with around 23 million doses expected by the end of the year.
The Ugandan president said he hoped 12 million people will get vaccinated by the end of December 2021, including vulnerable people and health and education.
Museveni urged Ugandans to go to the health centers and get immunized as soon as possible. He said schools and the economy will be reopened even if people don’t get themselves vaccinated. He made a special appeal to people above 50 years to get vaccinated since they are susceptible to covid-19.
“If anything goes wrong, the moral responsibility is yours,” the Ugandan president said.
Last month, Museveni lifted the bulk of COVID-19-related restrictions in the country, which has seen just more than 3,000 deaths from the virus. Some of the sectors that have remained closed to date include educational institutions, bars, theatres, and cinemas.
Notably, Uganda is the only country in Africa where schools remain fully closed for close to two years. Although some classes were partially reopened between October 2020 and April this year, the schools were again closed when the country was hit by the second wave of the pandemic.
