Schools Urged to Support Ongoing Measles-Rubella Vaccination Campaign

What the report says

Wakiso District leaders have urged schools, parents and caregivers to cooperate with the ongoing National Measles-Rubella Vaccination Campaign, which is being run by the Ministry of Health with local governments and partners. The campaign is aimed at children aged nine months to five years, and district officials said broad participation is needed to reach all eligible children.

According to Wakiso District, health teams have faced resistance or delays at some schools, and officials said about 60 percent of schools had not yet made arrangements to support vaccination by Saturday, October 3. The district’s Assistant District Health Officer, Betty Nabuganda, said some private schools were asking for parental consent forms before allowing authorized health workers to vaccinate pupils. She called on government, private and international schools to provide space, help organize pupils safely and share accurate information with families.

District Chairperson Ian Kyeyune said the district may take administrative measures against institutions that do not cooperate with public health efforts, while also reassuring parents that the vaccine has gone through the required testing and approval steps. Ministry of Health regional supervisor Emmanuel Mukisa said the remaining campaign period should be used to vaccinate all eligible children. Senior Education Officer Janat Nakabugo Ssali said the district is working with schools to improve compliance.

The district said the cooperation of schools is especially important because Wakiso has thousands of education institutions, including private primary schools, early childhood centres and government primary schools. More broadly, the campaign reflects Uganda’s effort to prevent vaccine-preventable disease and strengthen child health.