What does vaccination of your child mean to you?

During World Immunization Week, UNICEF, and the local government in Kikuube District, one of the most remote districts in South Western Uganda, organized catch-up immunization outreach sessions in hard-to-reach villages to ensure no child misses out regardless of where they are located. The additional outreach sessions which supplement other immunization drives including routine immunization within the health facilities at district level, were made possible with UNICEF support and financial assistance from the European Union.

There is a beehive of activity at the outreach post in faraway Kiina Village, located in Buhuka Parish, Kyangwali Sub County. Parents and caregivers have arrived with their children. Each one of them with a vaccination card. The records therein will inform which vaccines they will get today.

UNICEF interacted with some of the mothers who brought their little ones for vaccination and they shared why vaccines are important. 

Baby William aged one month, and two weeks smiles after receiving his polio drops. During the vaccination exercise, William was also protected against diarrhoea, measles, and pneumonia through the vaccines he received. 

Joyce Ayiyorworth, William’s mother, shares that she came to the outreach to get ‘medicine’ for her son. “I know that when my baby gets the vaccines, he will not be affected by diseases.” She confirms that all her other three children have completed their vaccinations. 

Baby Musa is four months old. Through vaccines, he was protected from polio, diarrhoea, measles and pneumonia. His mother Evelyne Tuwebare heard about the immunization session and ensured she participated. She missed Musa’s last vaccination appointment because the health facility is far, and she didn’t have transportation. Happy that the vaccines were brought closer to them, she shares that vaccines help fight diseases in her child’s body and protect him from polio too. 

Nicholas Annie a mother of four is among the many mothers at the outreach session. Today she has brought two-months John Sempa and three-year Umaru John for vaccination. When asked why she prioritizes vaccination for her children, she is quick to answer – “Vaccinating my children makes me feel at peace. When they are vaccinated, I know they will be healthy and wont contract diseases.” No wonder all her other two children are fully vaccinated. 

“My child was vaccinated but I lost the card,” said Sanyu Florence, mother of Roger Murungi aged two and a half years.

Sanyu affirms that vaccination is good for children because it protects them from diseases like measles. “When you vaccinate your child, you can’t be disturbed by diseases when they grow. A vaccinated baby can also easily access services like education and others,” she continued.

Even when the country experienced limited movements during the lockdown, Sanyu and her husband found means to reach the nearest vaccination point to honour Roger’s vaccination appointments.