Nigeria: Lagos kicks off Covid vaccination

 

Nigeria's Lagos state started its coronavirus vaccination campaign on Friday after receiving over 500,000 doses of the AstraZeneca jab, despite concerns in some countries over the safety of the vaccine.

Lagos state health commissioner Akin Abayomi told reporters that authorities had spent a long time looking over the data and concluded that there was "no reason for us to slow down our COVID-19 vaccination response."

Some countries, mostly in Europe, have paused use of the AstraZeneca jab following sporadic reports of blood clots.

But the European Medicines Agency said there was no evidence of an increase in dangerous blood clots in connection with the shots.

Health workers and front line responders began receiving the vaccine in Lagos on Friday.

"I am very, very happy that we are advancing and the government is doing so much," said Clara Emembolu, a 74-year-old who was inoculated.

"I appreciate the government's effort in trying to secure this for our people."

Nigeria is among more than 180 countries worldwide receiving vaccines through the COVAX initiative.

 

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Rwanda becomes first African nation to use Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine

Rwanda began its COVID-19 vaccine campaign on Friday, becoming the first nation in Africa to use pharmaceutical company Pfizer’s doses that require ultra-cold storage.

Authorities began transporting Pfizer and AstraZeneca shots round the hilly nation of 12 million people after they arrived earlier this week, using helicopters to reach far-flung parts.

“This means that I will die when God wants because the coronavirus cannot kill me now,” 90-year-old Stephanie Nyirankuriza said, leaning on a walking stick after her shot at a health centre just east of the capital Kigali.

As in most nations, health workers and the elderly are first in line as President Paul Kagame’s government plans to vaccinate up to 30% of Rwandans by the end of this year.

The Kagame government, which prides itself on efficiency and technological prowess but is often criticised as authoritarian, has installed special infrastructure to keep the Pfizer vaccine at the required -70 degrees.

‘LENGTHENING MY LIFE’

At some centres, people were required to sign consent forms before receiving the shots.

Sitting in a makeshift tent awaiting her turn, Urusaro Ntoranyi, 70, said she was confident the vaccine was safe. “I have children who got COVID-19,” she added, saying that they survived but two other relatives had died.

Those vaccinated were required to stay for about 15 minutes in case of side effects.

“This is like lengthening my life span,” 69-year-old Sisiyani Rusenyanteko, a community health worker and father-of-nine, exulted after an AstraZeneca shot.

Rwanda has so far received 102,960 and 240,000 doses of Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines respectively via the global COVAX facility.

Rwanda’s Health Minister Daniel Ngamije said he expected to get more but did not say from where. “The turnout is good,” he said, shortly after receiving his Pfizer shot, adding the doses had been distributed to over 500 health facilities countrywide.

Rwanda has reported just over 19,000 cases and 265 deaths.

 

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Kenya receives 1.02 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine

Over 1 million doses of Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine part of 24 million doses country expects to receive within months

 

NAIROBI, Kenya — Kenya has received just over 1 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine in the first batch from the global COVAX initiative that was created to ensure that low- and middle-income countries have fair access to vaccines.

Some 1.02 million doses of the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine, manufactured by the Serum Institute of India, arrived in Nairobi early Wednesday, according to a joint statement from UNICEF, the World Health Organization, international vaccine alliance GAVI and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations.

Kenyan Health Minister Mutahi Kagwe expressed excitement and optimism that the vaccines would help stop the spread of the coronavirus that has forced the East African country to partially lock down its economy with devastating consequences for many citizens.

“We have been fighting the pandemic with rubber bullets but what we have acquired today is equivalent, metaphorically speaking, to bazookas and machine guns,” Kagwe said.

The minister said the vaccines will be administered to some 400,000 medical workers and the rest will go to other frontline workers such as teachers and police officers.

Many Kenyan public health care workers have been disgruntled over the inadequate supply of personal protective equipment, and they say they were never paid the allowances that the government promised them for the extra work and risk while combating COVID-19.

Austine Oduor, an official with the Kenya Union of Clinical Officers, said there is no palpable excitement from members of his union and nurses who were forced by a court order to resume work last week after a 70-day strike.

“What they really wanted was payment of the allowances,” Oduor said. “ In fact, some are questioning whether the distribution will be done fairly in a country where corruption is rampant.”

Kenya has more than 106,000 confirmed virus cases including more than 1,800 deaths.

 

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ZIMBABWE: Unvaccinated Citizens To Be Barred From Public Spaces

President Emmerson Mnangagwa

PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa has warned Zimbabweans to get vaccinated against the deadly Covid-19 pandemic or they will soon be barred from all public spaces.

Zimbabwe rolled out the national immunisation programme last week after receiving a donation of 200 000 Sinopharm doses from China.

Speaking in Nyamandlovu, Matabeleland North province Thursday, Mnangagwa said his government was expecting to purchase another 1,8 million doses from China before warning citizens avoiding inoculation that they would be barred from all public spaces.

Mnangagwa is yet to receive the vaccination.

A person who has been vaccinated is issued with a “Covid-19 Vaccination Card”.

“Don’t forget your Covid-19 Vaccination Card for the second dose. Make sure you keep this record card in your wallet. Keep it in a safe place,” the card reads in part.

Mnangagwa’s Thursday chilling warning was confirmed by his spokesperson George Charamba.

“Cde ED Mnangagwa, today (Thursday) broke his silence on whether or not (to take) the Covid-19 vaccination remains voluntary forever,” Charamba said after Mnangagwa’s speech.

“Those wishing to abstain from the vaccination programme are free to do, for as long as they accept the onerous trade-off: namely that they may have to be barred from public spaces, including accessing offices, shops, or riding mass transits like ZUPCO.”

Charamba added: “The leadership has and continues to demonstrate safety of the country’s chosen vaccines by being the first ones to have the vaccines administered on them, added the President, revealing he is set to be vaccinated in the second batch of the vaccine which is expected in the country in the next week or two.

“So, too, will his Cabinet ministers. So, asked the President, who are you to resist the vaccination programme thus imperiling the general public, including yourself and your family? The President invited Vice President (Constantino Chiwenga) up as proof that the Sinopharm vaccine was indeed safe.

“Many medical staff, themselves the core frontline in the fight against Covid-19, have been vaccinated under the programme which is wholly government funded and is meant to get Zimbabwe back to normalcy.”

Mnangagwa said there were companies who had approached government with proposals to import Covid-19 vaccines and sell them for a profit, but they had been turned away.

“If any company buys vaccines, they must be distributed freely. The Ministry of Health supported by (Finance Minister Mthuli) Ncube also bought two sets yesterday (Wednesday), 600 000 doses which will come during the first two weeks of March and another 1,2 million doses.”

Chiwenga was the first official to get injected when the vaccination programme was rolled out in Harare last week.

However, some Zimbabweans have raised concerns on being vaccinated with Sinopharm vaccine when the World Health Organisation (WHO) is yet to approve it while there many other approved inoculations from other countries.

In response to these dissenting voices, Charamba retorted: “Go to those countries for those vaccines; here we decide! Period. And to govern is to decide. You don’t dictate to us!”

 

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Kenya to Receive First Batch of Covid-19 Vaccines Next Week

Residents queue for a Covid-19 test in Nairobi, Kenya, on May 26. Photographer: Luis Tato/Bloomberg

Kenya will receive its initial batch of Covid-19 vaccines in the first week on March, according to President Uhuru Kenyatta’s office.

Health-care workers and frontline personnel, including security officers, teachers, vulnerable persons and those in the hospitality sector, will be the first priority for inoculation, the presidency said in a statement following a cabinet meeting on Thursday.

The East African nation expects to vaccinate 16 million of its approximately 53 million people by June next year, Health Secretary Mutahi Kagwe said earlier this month.

 

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Zimbabwe official faces trial for embezzling COVID funds

Separately, last year health minister was sacked for fraud in purchase of COVID-19 material

 

A senior health official in Zimbabwe was arraigned on Monday before a court for misappropriating funds to fight coronavirus.

Portia Manangazira, the director of epidemiology and disease control, faced four counts of criminal abuse of office when she appeared before Deputy Chief Magistrate Bianca Makwande.

The government funds allegedly looted by Manangazira, together with the fuel, were said to be part of the $796,675 disbursed by the Health Ministry for the training of 800 health workers nationwide amid the rollout of a national vaccination program. Manangazira is expected to apply for bail.

Last year, then-Health Minister Obadiah Moyo was dismissed by President Emmerson Mnangagwa after being implicated in a $60 million scandal involving the purchase of COVID-19 material.

A landlocked country in southern Africa, Zimbabwe has so far recorded 35,796 COVID-19 cases and 1,436 deaths, with recoveries exceeding 32,000.

Last week, it launched its vaccination drive by inoculating healthcare workers in the first phase.

Over 200,000 doses of the Sinopharm vaccine donated by China are being used in the first phase of the campaign, which is mainly targeting people over 60, front-line government workers, and vulnerable groups.

 

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WHO assures support for Nigeria on COVID-19 vaccines

The World Health Organization (WHO) has assured Nigeria that it will support the country procure, distribute and administer COVID-19 vaccines.

Speaking during a press briefing in Nigeria’s capital Abuja on Saturday, WHO Country Representative Walter Kazadi Mulomboo, said that Nigeria and other Africa countries were not disqualified from accessing COVID-19 vaccines through the COVAX facility, the WHO-led initiative for equitable global access to coronavirus vaccines, to meet the urgent vaccination needs of developing countries.

The assurance was in response to rumors that the WHO disqualified Nigeria from COVID-19 vaccines based on the country’s inability to meet the standard requirement of storing the vaccines at the required -70 degrees Celsius.

Earlier, senior Nigerian officials had noted that the country was hoping to get more than 40 million COVID-19 vaccine doses to cover one-fifth of its population through the global COVAX scheme in 2021.

According to Mulomboo, WHO is supporting all countries to access the vaccines as quickly as possible, and all countries on the continent are expected to start accessing the AstraZeneca/Oxford vaccine by the end of February, noting that the vaccine is under WHO review for emergency use listing, and the outcome is expected soon.

“Of all the 88 million AstraZeneca vaccine doses allocated to African countries for the first phase, Nigeria has received by far the largest allocation, with 16 million doses,” he said.

Also at the press briefing, Faisal Shuaib, director-general of Nigeria’s National Primary Healthcare Development Agency (NPHDA), said that several factors were considered in allocating the small quantity of vaccines in the initial stage to COVAX countries.

These include the mortality rates from COVID-19, the number of new cases, the trend in the number of cases, the population of countries, and the availability of the appropriate cold chain equipment, Shuaib said.

The latest figures by the Nigeria Center for Disease Control indicate that the country registered 1,588 new cases of COVID-19 on Saturday, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 139,242 and total deaths to 1,647.

 

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Zimbabwe Appeals for Vaccine Funding Amid Surge in COVID-19 Cases

FILE - A man wears a mask as he walks past closed shops during a lockdown aimed at limiting the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Harare, Zimbabwe, Jan. 28, 2021.

 

HARARE, ZIMABABWE - Zimbabwe’s government is asking for help from the country’s corporate sector, citizens and other well-wishers to fund the import of COVID-19 vaccines. The southern African nation is falling behind in the battle with the coronavirus, despite imposing a 12-hour curfew last month as part of a lockdown to deal with the pandemic, which has infected about 35,000 people in Zimbabwe and caused 1,300 deaths, most of them this year alone. 

Itai Rusike, executive director of the nonprofit Community Working Group on Health in Zimbabwe said in an interview he was shocked by the extension of the “usual begging bowl” when President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government has been lately “bragging of a surplus budget.” He said citizens and companies in Zimbabwe are feeling the impact of the slowed economy, so they cannot donate for COVID-19 vaccine imports. 

"So, let us use the budget surplus money to purchase the vaccines. We also have the 2% tax on mobile money transactions," said Rusike. "We also have the health levy. These funds should be earmarked for the vaccine purchases for now. Even the International Monetary Fund said spend the budget surplus money as long as the financing is transparent and closely monitored.”

Zimbabwean Finance and Economic Development Minister Mthuli Ncube refused to comment Saturday on his call for assistance.

Rusike added that the call for an unspecified amount of funds to import vaccines was confusing after Mnangagwa this week said his government had sourced free vaccines – some 200,000 donated by China. In the same speech, broadcast on national television, Mnangagwa said.

“A national vaccine deployment framework has also been finalized," he added. "The initial objective is to inoculate at least 60% of the population. Government has set aside the requisite financial resources for the purchase of vaccines.”

Rusike said Zimbabwe should not expect much assistance from its usual donors such as the U.S., Britain and the European Union.

"It will be very difficult for the international donors, to come in and support Zimbabwe at this stage," said Rusike. "Mainly because the very same donors are having the biggest burden of COVID-19. If you look at the U.S, the U.K, these are the hotspots for COVID-19. A lot of more people [than Zimbabwe] have been infected from COVID-19 and a lot of people continue to die from COVID-19 in those respective countries.”

For years now, the country’s health sector has largely depended on assistance of aid organizations such as USAID. The country’s health workers have on several occasions been on strike – including during this coronavirus outbreak - asking for PPE and better salaries. 

 

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Kenya says it will vaccinate 1.25 million before June 2021

Kenya’s Ministry of Health said that 1.25 million people will be vaccinated against Covid-19 before the end of June.

 

Mercy Mwangangi, chief administrative secretary in the Ministry of Health said on Friday that the government has prioritized the vaccination that will start in February to June, Xinhua news agency reported on Saturday.

“The people to be covered in this period include frontline health workers and all staff working in health facilities both in public and private sector,” Mwangangi told journalists in Nairobi.

She noted that workers undertaking essential services in priority sectors like security and immigration will also be vaccinated during the period.

The official further revealed that 9.7 million Kenyans, including persons above 18 years of age with underlying health conditions will be vaccinated from July to June 2022.

“It is important to note that if vaccines become available sooner than expected and resources are available, the targets may change,” she added.

Mwangangi observed that the government is working towards a smooth introduction of the vaccine by ensuring that all logistical arrangements are in place for the expected delivery of vaccines before the end of February.

“Kenya has resolved to adopt a vaccine whose emergency use authorization has the approval of a stringent regulatory authority like the World Health Organization,” Mwangangi added.

She said that through Covid-19 vaccines global access facility (COVAX), Kenya will receive 24 million doses of vaccines and also procure 11 million doses from other mechanisms to vaccinate nearly 16 million people, about 30 per cent of the population, over a period of 18 months.

She added that the government has set up a safety monitoring system to investigate and take up immediate measures in consultation with the Pharmacy and Poison Board (PPB) in case of any reported adverse effects from the vaccine.

Mwangangi said that modelling teams are currently assessing the situation in all parts of the country to determine whether the country has flattened the Covid-19 infection curve.

“Our positivity rate has been fluctuating between three and 10 per cent in recent times,” she revealed, noting that the government has established vaccination infrastructure with central storage facilities in Nairobi for vaccines requiring cold chains of up to minus 20 Celsius and some limited capacity for minus 70 Celsius in the major urban areas.

Kenya has registered 100,563 positive cases since the outbreak of the disease in March 2020 after testing a cumulative figure of 1.177 million people as of Friday.

So far, 1,753 people have died from the disease while a total of 83,821 patients have recovered from the disease.

 

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