from DANIEL JONES in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe Bureau
VICTORIA FALLS, (CAJ News) – FOR a country synonymous with economic challenges and a dire health services sector, Zimbabwe’s coronavirus vaccination campaign has been phenomenal.
The Southern African country has carved some history after procuring more than 12 million vaccines, to become one of the world’s countries to have acquired vaccines for 80 percent of their populations.
Zimbabwe, with a population put between 13 million and 14,65 million, is at par with such countries as fellow African nations – Egypt and Morocco – as well as Australia, Brazil, Canada, Peru and the United States, among others with sound economies and renowned healthcare sectors.
This is contained in the COVID-19 Vaccine Supply Tracker, designed by the Multilateral Leaders Taskforce (MLT) for Scaling COVID-19 Tools.
The taskforce is made up of the World Health Organization (WHO), the World Bank Group (WBG), International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Trade Organization (WTO).
Dr John Mangwiro, the Zimbabwe Deputy Minister of Health and Childcare, hailed the progress achieved by the government of President Emmerson Mnangagwa.
“I want to reassure the nation that the country has bought a total of 12 million vaccines, paid for, in cash,” he emphasised.
“It’s just delivery timetables that are going on. We want people to get vaccinated,” he added.
Zimbabwe’s population was just above 13 million according to the 2012 census. The World Bank in 2019 placed it at 14,65 million.
The country targets to inoculate about 10 million citizens, making 60 percent of the population, excluding children.
More than 1, 7 million people had been vaccinated as of Tuesday. There have been reports of nationals from neighbouring South Africa receiving their jabs in Zimbabwe.
Victoria Falls, the tourism hub, has reached herd immunity with the vaccination of over 22 000 residents.
There are 112 435 cumulative cases and 3 676 deaths from COVID-19 since the first case was reported in the country in March last year.
The COVID-19 Vaccine Supply Tracker has been made available following the first meeting of the MLT.
It is hailed as a comprehensive database to track the number of vaccine doses secured by countries and areas through different channels, including bilateral agreements with manufacturers, donations from other countries, multilateral agreements through the COVAX facility, WBG, Asian Development Bank or other institutions.
Zimbabwe’s health sector issues are blamed on an economy that has been on a decline over the past two decades.
– CAJ News