KAMPALA, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- Uganda's ministry of health on Thursday said it has ordered 9 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine amid surging new infections in the country.
The ministry said in a statement issued here that the vaccines will cover 20 percent of the country's total population of 45 million people.
"Plans are underway to secure additional doses of the vaccine to cover more people," said the statement.
Uganda on Tuesday said it had applied through the GAVI Alliance (Global Alliances for Vaccines and Immunization) to secure the COVID-19 vaccine from drugmaker AstraZeneca.
The ministry has warned that the COVID-19 situation in the country is getting worse, urging the public to follow the prevention procedures.
Uganda on Wednesday registered 1,199 new cases of COVID-19, the highest ever daily increase since the novel coronavirus outbreak nine months ago, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 25,059.
So far, Uganda has registered a total of 9,510 recoveries and 219 deaths since the index case was reported on March 21. Enditem
