Abstract

The study aimed at investigating the factors influencing the uptake of COVID-19 vaccines among
people in Ishaka, Bushenyi District in Uganda. Understanding the factors that influenced the
uptake of COVID-19 vaccines is of great help in creating strategies to increase vaccine coverage
in order to rapidly bring the pandemic to an end. A quantitative cross section study approach
was conducted, sample size was 317 participants. Data was collected using an intervieweradministered
questionnaire and the data analyzed using SPPS. The analyzed data was then
presented in form of tables and graphs. According to the study majority of the participants
67.8% were males and minority 31.2% were females. Most of them 34.1% aged between 31-40
years with 52.5% not married. Most 40.7% had attained secondary, 35.6% tertiary and 23.7%
primary level. Majority 74.1% were Christians, 22.7% Muslim while minorities 3.2% were pagans.
Most participants 31.5%were business men, 25.9% working in the private sector, 19.2% students,
and 14.2% civil servants while 6%were unemployed. 166. 80.1% live in an urban area. Of the
participants earn less than one million a month, 25.2% no monthly salary, 9.5% earn between
one million and two million while minority 4.7% were earning more than two million. It was
found that 99.7% participants knew about covid-19 while only 0.3% did not know. It was found
that 74.4% of the participants had not been vaccinated while 25.9% had been vaccinated. Those
who were not vaccinated, only 27.7% were willing to get vaccinated and 72.3% were not willing
to get vaccinated. The COVID-19 vaccination rate among people in Ishaka Bushenyi was low
despite most people having the knowledge about Covid-19 vaccine and good attitude towards
covid-19 vaccine. There uptake of the vaccine remained low with most people fearing the side
effects of the vaccine.