Bugesera: COVID-19 vaccines continue to be delivered to daycare centers

By Gaston K. Rwaka

In order to continue to deal with the COVID-19 epidemic, vaccinations are given to those who have not yet received them, one of the existing programs is to deliver these vaccines to children in their kindergartens known as ECDs (Early Child Development). Parents report that they are happy with it because they benefited a lot.

One of the first initiatives to protect children from kindergartens is in Bugesera district. An example is in Kagomasi village in Gashora sector, 76 children are counted in 9 ECDs, which started to be immunized on March 29, 2023.

21 children were vaccinated in 3 ECDs

When a group of journalists from different media formed in the Association of Journalists Against Aids in Rwanda (ABASIRWA) visited the vaccination site on March 30, 2023, they found that children were being vaccinated.

The director of the Gashora Health Center, Habimana Landouard, who is also the head of the preventive action at the sector level, announced how the program is being carried out.

He said, “Adults and primary school children have been immunized, now we are moving down to immunizing kindergarten children from five to six years old. We want Rwandans of all ages to be protected and have adequate insurance”.

He went on to say that they will continue this program of visiting children in the villages in order to bring health services to the people, given that before the children are protected, their parents should be consulted first.

Parents relax!

These immunization services were usually initiated at Gashora Health Center, where many traveled long distances to get vaccinated or to vaccinate their children.

Nyiranzabandora Mariya, the representative of the church, is one of the children’s protectors at Kagumasi village. When a group of writers from different media, made up of ABASIRWA, visited the area, they brought 3 five-year-old children and 4 6-year-old children.

He said, “Now we are happy because before we used to travel long distances because it required us to go to the health center. Where this program goes to protect children and vulnerable people in their communities, we were really relieved. This shows that our government cares about us.”

The guardian’s mother continues to say that first they will be trained and explained to those who have to come and take the Covid 19 vaccine, and then they will go and explain it to their parents.

He returned to the previous perception that misled the public, where it was said that those who were vaccinated could spread other diseases such as diarrhea, but now they know the importance of vaccination.

In Gashora Sector, 942 children studying in 36 ECDs will be vaccinated.

In the Bugesera region, the vaccination coverage of kindergartens has reached 43%, now that 30,442 of the 71,570 children who should be vaccinated have been vaccinated.