With Uganda reporting more than 1000 new cases on a daily for the past weeks, medical supply chains have broken. In addition to oxygen shortages, there are shortages of hospital beds and vaccine doses.
Good news coming in indicates that Uganda People’s Defense Forces (UPDF) under its arm National Enterprises Corporation (NEC) has started producing oxygen in Luweero industries to be distributed to hospitals in Uganda that experienced oxygen shortage.
“We are delighted to inform Ugandans that we now produce medical masks and oxygen at Luwero Industries in Nakasongola to mitigate the spread of deadly Covid19 virus,” said Gen James Mugira, the Managing Director at NEC.
Mugira disclosed that Bombo Military Hospital has started receiving oxygen cylinders and Mulago National Referral Hospital has also placed orders.
In this second wave, about 20 patients are said to have succumbed to COVID-19 due to lack of oxygen.
The Ministry of Health said Sunday that the country’s COVID-19 tally has reached 61,977, after 1,727 new infections were reported. Death toll stood at 428 as another five people lost their lives to the virus.