Uganda to Vaccinate Newborns in Renewed Hepatitis B Fight

By Xinhua

Kampala, Uganda — Uganda said Thursday that it would use 200,000 doses of the Hepatitis B vaccine donated by Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, to immunize newborns.

Rose Akuno, Hepatitis program coordinator at the Ministry of Health, told Xinhua by telephone that the vaccination campaign, scheduled for August, aims to prevent and control new Hepatitis B infections among newborns in the East African country.

According to ministry data, about 2.7 million adults and 230,000 children -- roughly 6 percent of Uganda's population -- remain critically infected with the virus.

Akuno said that all newborns, whether born in health facilities or at home, should be vaccinated within the first 24 hours of birth. "The mothers should ensure the newborns receive this vaccine to prevent and protect them from Hepatitis B," she said.

The donation from Gavi is expected to arrive in the country later this month or early next month, according to the Health Ministry.

Akuno said that Uganda faces significant funding challenges in the fight against Hepatitis B, with only three million U.S. dollars allocated to the program.

In 2022, an estimated 1,250 Ugandans died of the disease, according to the World Health Organization.

Hepatitis B can cause chronic infection and puts people at high risk of death from cirrhosis and liver cancer, according to the Ministry of Health. It spreads through contact with the blood or other body fluids of an infected person. ∎

Read the original article on Independent (Kampala).

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