MPs on the Health Committee have put the National Medical Stores (NMS) on the spot to account for the UGX 80b meant for the procurement of the COVID-19 vaccine.

This followed claims by NMS that they had spent UGX 60b to procure the Johnson and Johnson vaccines in the last six months.

However, MPs insist that most of the vaccines in Uganda are donations.

In the 2021/22 financial year budget, the Finance Ministry allocated UGX 560 Billion to the Health sector and another UGX 80 billion to National Medical Stores (NMS) for the procurement of the COVID-19 vaccines.
 
This was on top of the UGX 18.5 billion supplementary budget for procurement of the 18 million doses of AstraZeneca in addition to UGX 30 billion from the contingency fund.

Despite these releases, the majority of the vaccines in Uganda have been donations, raising questions over what the money was spent on.
 
Before the Budget Committee NMS acknowledged receipt of the 80 billion shillings in the first quarter of the financial year.
 
NMS Chief Stores Officer Paul Okware, confirmed that 60 billion has been spent in the last six months to purchase the Johnson and Johnson vaccine.
 
“In the last 6 months, we have received, over UGX 60 Billion worth of Johnson & Johnson vaccine. There is more to come. In the last 6 months, we have received a total of UGX 533 Billion worth of vaccines. So, you can see the component that GOU funding is also providing towards the availability of the vaccines,” Okware told the committee.
 
However, Okware could not provide the total number of vaccines so far procured compared to the consignments donated, prompting the MPs to demand accountability for the monies released by the government.
 
“To satisfy people’s anxiety, we will make sure that, to this very report, we shall add details of the monies that have been made available for the vaccines and the quantities that have been received so far including those using GOU funding,” Okware told MPs.
 
According to the Health Ministry, Uganda has so far received 34.5 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines with 20 million administered.
 
The queries came as NMS appeared before the committee to defend the UGX 597 billion proposed budget for the 2022/23 financial year, under the budget framework paper.
 
In the coming financial year, the government is providing no funds for the purchase of vaccines in anticipation of a UGX 483.5 Billion grant from the World Bank for the vaccines.
 
This comes as the number of COVID-19 infections continues to rise with 865 new cases and 4 deaths reported on 09th January. The day before 18 people succumbed to the virus.