A woman receives a dose of COVID-19 vaccine in Kampala, Uganda, May 21, 2021. Uganda on Friday started the second phase of COVID-19 vaccination in the country. (Photo: Nicholas Kajoba/Xinhua)

KAMPALA, May 21 (Xinhua) -- Uganda on Friday started the second phase of COVID-19 vaccination in the country.

Health minister Ruth Aceng, foreign minister Sam Kutesa and World Health Organization representative in Uganda Yonas Tegegn Woldemariam were among those who received their second shot of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine at the ministry of health headquarters in the capital, Kampala.

"The ministry of health advises all those who received their first dose and completed eight weeks to visit the nearest vaccination facility for their second. The vaccine is safe and effective," Aceng said after getting her second jab.

On March 10, Uganda launched the first phase of COVID-19 vaccination, targeting high-risk groups such as health workers, teachers, social workers, security personnel, the elderly, and those with underlying medical conditions.

As of Thursday, Uganda had inoculated 472,617 people against COVID-19, a majority of them in Kampala.