The public engagement project 'Establishing a pool of school-going adolescent girls and boys as immunisation ambassadors in Entebbe, Uganda,' led by Patrice Mawa from the Uganda Virus Research Institute, aimed to train students as immunisation ambassadors and change agents able to engage, empower and link mothers and community members to maternal and neonatal immunisation services.

The project started with a baseline survey using a questionnaire to assess existing knowledge and awareness on vaccines and maternal immunisation and was followed by training on vaccines, leadership and communication skills. Training materials were provided to students aged 15-19 years from secondary schools in Entebbe.

Up to 506 students were trained and 329 (65.3%) of these were female. 462 (93.5%) of the students believed that vaccines are safe, 475 (96.7%) thought it is necessary to vaccinate communities against diseases. 353 (71.6%) would accept to be vaccinated with a new vaccine and 463 (93.2%) would encourage communities to vaccinate. 481 (97%) heard about immunisation while 334 (67.9%) heard about maternal immunisation before the training.

Out of 390 responders, the following proportion of students knew about some of the vaccines used against immunisable diseases: 304 (78%) for polio, 223 (57%) for BCG, 177 (45%) for measles, 129 (33%) for tetanus and 76 (19%) for COVID-19. Student knowledge or awareness of vaccines was low for HPV (8%) and yellow fever (1.28%). 1.54% and 2% of the students thought there are vaccines for HIV and malaria, respectively. 361 (74.1%) of the students agreed that maternal immunisation is beneficial to both the mother and the newborn, and 354 (73.1%) had heard about immunisation of mothers against tetanus. 433 (91.2%) of the students were happy to act as a link between parents and communities and maternal immunisation services.

The project produced the following outcomes and impact: Before the training, 33 (8%) of the students had poor general knowledge on vaccination and this reduced to 8 (2%) after the training. 86 (22%) of the students had poor general knowledge and awareness of maternal immunisation before the training and this reduced to 7 (1%) after the training. The students demonstrated enjoyment of the training exercise and were inspired by some of the presenters, most of whom are undertaking PhD or postdoctoral programs. The students were exposed to new knowledge of basic immunology and basic concepts such as herd immunity. The students showed interest in vaccines and how the immune system works, and they were curious about COVID-19 vaccines.