Uganda Starts Relief Food Distribution For Vulnerable People Amid COVID-19 Lockdown

KAMPALA, Apr 5 (NNN-XINHUA) – Uganda, on Saturday, started relief food distribution to about 1.5 million urban poor, who are affected by the lock-down, as a measure to contain the COVID-19 outbreak in the country.

Prime Minister, Ruhakana Rugunda, flagged off the door-to-door food distribution, which started in Bwaise, a suburb in the capital Kampala.

“We have today flagged off a government relief food distribution programme, to vulnerable individuals who have been affected by the lock-down measures,” said Rugunda.

“The focus will be making sure the elderly, sick and pregnant women are taken into account. To ensure social distance, the relief food is going to be distributed house to house, door to door. There will be no lining and no semblance of crowding,” he said.

According the ministry of relief and disaster preparedness, the beneficiaries include the elderly, sickly, lactating mothers and commuter taxi drivers, in Kampala and neighbouring central district of Wakiso.

The package will include six kg of maize flour per person, three kg of beans per person, and salt. The lactating mothers and the sick will receive two kg of powdered milk and two kg of sugar.

The country is under lock-down as a measure to contain the spread of the disease.

Currently the country has 48 confirmed cases of COVID-19.