Uganda (MNN) ― Uganda's immunization coverage has been rising in the past few years.
It's the direct result of newly-introduced health reforms that included some changes at the Ministry of Health, health financing reforms, and more involvement from the private sector. A lot has changed in the last decade. In 2001, per capita expenditures on health were $14. Today, that number nears $120 per person.
Some credit awareness campaigns with the changes. Others credit more direct interventions with resources and training.
Even with all the positive results, the reality is that within the next 24 hours more than 80 children will die. These deaths can be prevented with basic health care, if the parents can afford it. However, roughly a third of the population lives under the poverty line, on less than a dollar a day.
When forced to choose between food and immunizations, families often choose food. Without protection, children in Uganda face life-threatening diseases that have long been defeated in the United States through simple vaccination.
International Needs Network has a team in Uganda offering a simple immunization program. With $30, the team can immunize a child against diphtheria, measles, polio, tetanus, tuberculosis, and whooping cough.
Each child who is immunized is able to fight back when disease attacks. The project could save lives, but so far, it has zero support.
I.N. Network Uganda comes alongside people living in poverty with help for everyday needs: school for the children, a medical clinic for the sick, livestock for family nutrition and income, and the Gospel of Jesus Christ for all.
Each day is filled with challenges, heartbreak, and prayer that God will bless the nation of Uganda. Something as simple as an immunization can open doors of new opportunity for the children I.N. Network helps.
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