Uganda launched a nationwide measles and rubella vaccination campaign aiming to reach nearly 7.9 million children aged 9-59 months across 146 districts. The initiative responds to immunity gaps from the pandemic and 66 measles outbreaks recorded in 2025.
Wakiso Health Center Launch Marks Nationwide Immunization Push
Nine-month-old Sly sat in his mother’s arms while health workers prepared the injection, with his 23-month-old sister, Ivy, waiting nearby. The two children became among the first recipients at Wakiso Health Center IV during the opening of Uganda’s nationwide immunization drive.
Their mother, Ritah Atukunda, explained her decision to bring both children to the facility. I brought both my children because I want them to grow up healthy and protected,
she said, adding that she feared they could fall ill without the immunization.
“This vaccination campaign is about ensuring that our children survive, grow into adulthood and live healthy lives,”
Dr Chris Baryomunsi, Uganda’s Minister of Health
Dr Chris Baryomunsi, Uganda’s Minister of Health, added that together, they can protect Uganda’s children from measles and rubella.
Reaching 7.9 Million Children Across 146 Districts in Five Days
The five-day campaign spans all 146 districts and cities, targeting children aged 9 to 59 months. Public health officials designed the massive deployment to close immunity gaps that widened during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Although the country maintains one of the strongest immunization programs in the World Health Organization’s African Region—protecting against 14 vaccine-preventable diseases—measles has resurged globally due to pandemic disruptions in routine services.
Historical Doses and Pandemic Immunity Gaps
Uganda integrated the measles-rubella vaccine into routine services in October 2019 and added a second dose in October 2022. Maintaining the required 95 percent coverage for both doses has proved difficult. Approximately 3 million children missed their second dose during and after the pandemic. Although catch-up efforts reached about 1.5 million of them, many remain vulnerable.
The current initiative relies on months of planning involving the Ministry of Health, local leaders, health workers, and partner organizations. Dr Kasonde Mwinga, WHO Representative to Uganda, emphasized the broader impact during the launch.
“Vaccines do much more than prevent illness. They protect futures, give parents peace of mind and help build stronger, healthier communities,”
Dr Kasonde Mwinga, WHO Representative to Uganda
Dr Kasonde Mwinga noted that every child vaccinated today brings Uganda one step closer to a measles-free and rubella-controlled future.
Routine Immunization Schedules Remain Mandatory
Health authorities stress that emergency vaccination drives do not replace routine care. Caregivers must ensure that children complete every mandatory vaccine on the standard schedule. For Ritah Atukunda, leaving the Wakiso facility brought immediate relief for her family.
Now I feel comfortable and no longer worried about my children catching measles or rubella,
she said as she departed with Sly and Ivy, pledging to encourage other parents in her community to bring their eligible children forward.
African Nations Launch Campaigns to Reach Missed Children
Recent reports from the World Health Organization’s Africa office describe similar efforts across the continent to reach children missed by routine services. In Ethiopia, a second oral polio vaccination campaign reached 1.4 million children across three regions, achieving an administrative coverage rate of 102 percent against the original target.
Along the Nigeria-Niger border, health authorities coordinate vaccination and surveillance activities in border communities where population movements can disrupt childhood immunization. A joint campaign in those border areas reached approximately 94 percent of the targeted children for polio vaccination and other routine immunizations.
Beyond vaccination drives, public health initiatives are expanding access to diagnostics. A new $1 test aims to simplify screening pregnant women simultaneously for HIV, syphilis, and hepatitis B, with Nigeria, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya, Mozambique, and South Africa identified as main potential markets.
Meanwhile, Angola and Sierra Leone are preparing their vaccination priorities for 2026 through 2030, relying on the World Health Organization and its partners to determine which vaccines—including those against measles and rubella, malaria, rotavirus, and pneumococcal disease—to introduce or use more effectively amid constrained health funding.