Sep 19, 2021, 1:00 PM

COVID-19 vaccinations ramp up in Africa

TEHRAN, Sep. 19 (MNA) – African countries have – in the past week – administered four times as many COVID-19 vaccines as they have in the past three to four weeks.

This is according to World Health Organisation (WHO) Africa Regional Director for Africa, Dr Matshidiso Moeti, African News reported.

She said the increase in vaccinations is due to fast-tracked delivery of those doses.

“I am encouraged that when deliveries pick up – as they have after a new standstill for months – African countries show the resolve to keep the vaccine rollouts moving. Last week, 13 million doses were administered in Africa up from a weekly average of three to four million in the previous weeks,” she said.

Dr Moeti added that she expects at least 470 million doses to be delivered to African countries via the COVAX facility by December this year.

She said although this remains encouraging, the doses would only be enough to vaccinate 17% of Africans with at least double that amount needed to reach 40% of the population.

Africa still remains behind the rest of the world in vaccinations administered with only 3.6% of the continent’s population fully vaccinated.

ZZ/PR

News ID 178826