COVID-19 - The African Mirror

May

08

2021

Ghana to start second vaccine doses

COVID-19

GHANA received 350,000 doses of the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine yesterday, which will enable it to start offering second doses of the shot after it nearly ran out, the health ministry said. The West African country was the first to receive vaccines from the World Health Organisation-backed COVAX global vaccine sharing scheme in February and kicked off its vaccination campaign in early March. Unlike other countries where vaccine hesitancy and funding problems slowed delivery, Ghana has administered more than 900,000 doses, according to the health ministry, including the 600,000 doses it received from the COVAX scheme, and others obtained through bilateral…

May

08

2021

By The African Mirror

Tunisia announces one-week lockdown

COVID-19

TUNISIA will impose a COVID-19 lockdown for one week from Sunday, Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi said on Friday, ahead of next week's Eid al-Fitr holiday when families and friends traditionally gather. Speaking at a news conference, Mechichi said measures were being taken in case "the health system will collapse, and this is a real danger". As cases have mounted and intensive care wards filled, Tunisia had already suspended school classes, imposed mandatory quarantine and extended a nightly curfew. Mechichi had previously rejected another lockdown after one that Tunisia imposed last year, saying the country could not afford it. Tunisia's economy…

May

07

2021

By The African Mirror

Funding boost for cities

COVID-19

KIM HARRISBERG FROM sky banners in Cape Town to information campaigns led by transgender people in Rio de Janeiro, new funding announced yesterday will help 18 cities around the world boost COVID-19 vaccine confidence and reach vulnerable groups. The 18 African, Asian and Latin American countries will each receive $50,000 from the charity Bloomberg Philanthropies to creatively tackle misinformation and logistical bottlenecks in a bid to get more people vaccinated and save lives. "We simply will not end the pandemic anywhere until we end it everywhere," said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) which has partnered…

May

07

2021

By The African Mirror

Vaccine shows 51% efficacy against variant

COVID-19

JULIE STEENHUYSEN NOVAVAX Inc's COVID-19 vaccine had efficacy of 51% against infections caused by the South African variant among people who were HIV negative, and 43% in a group that included people who were HIV positive, according to a new analysis published on Wednesday. The variant, known as B.1.351, carries mutations that threaten the efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines, several studies have shown. Most vaccine makers, including Novavax, are testing versions of their vaccines to protect against emerging variants. The Novavax post-hoc analysis was published in the New England Journal of Medicine along with full data from the company's trial in…

Jun

19

2021

By The African Mirror

African universities ramp up COVID-19 vaccine development

COVID-19

COVIDHQ and bird AS a new wave of COVID-19 infections sweeps Africa, health authorities across the continent are hurrying to get populations vaccinated. The vaccines have all been imported from India, China, Europe or the United States. African academics and academic institutions are looking to ensure that this changes, now and in the future. An African Covid vaccine? Pillared and imposing, the neo-classical great hall of the University of the Witwatersrand, situated on a ridge overlooking what was, at the time of construction, the richest gold seam the world had ever seen, is nothing if not a bold statement on…

Jun

19

2021

By The African Mirror

Uganda imposes new measures

COVID-19

ELIAS BIRYABAREMA UGANDA'S president Yoweri Museveni has introduced sweeping new anti-coronavirus measures including a ban on all vehicular movement except for essential workers to help curb a second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic gripping the nation. The east African country, like most other African peers, had been left relatively unscathed by the first wave. It suddenly started experiencing a steep surge in COVID-19 infections last month after authorities confirmed they had detected the presence of the Indian coronavirus variant. "The country has seen a more aggressive and sustained growth of the COVID-19 pandemic," Museveni said in a televised address He…

Jun

19

2021

By The African Mirror

Africa COVID trajectory is ‘very concerning’

COVID-19

THE trend of COVID-19 cases in Africa is very concerning, a senior World Health Organization official has said. Absolute numbers do not make Africa look in bad shape, said Mike Ryan, the WHO's top emergency expert, adding that in the last week it had recorded just over 5% of global cases and 2.2% of deaths. But given the level of underdiagnosis, he told a news conference: "It's a trajectory that is very, very concerning."

Jun

18

2021

By The African Mirror

“Africa is in the midst of a full-blown third-wave”

COVID-19

COVID-19 cases rose by over 20% week-on-week in nearly two dozen African countries and progress on vaccinating Africans is proceeding slowly, with just 0.79% of people on the continent fully vaccinated, senior health officials have disclosed. "Africa is in the midst of a full-blown third-wave...We've seen in India and elsewhere how quickly COVID-19 can rebound and overwhelm health systems," Matshidiso Moeti, WHO regional director for Africa, told a news conference. New cases are up nearly 30% in the past week and deaths are up by 15%, she said, with five countries -- South Africa, Tunisia, Zambia, Uganda and Namibia --…

May

06

2021

By The African Mirror

U.N. chief pushes voluntary sharing of COVID-19 vaccine licenses

COVID-19

MICHELLE NICHOLS U.N. chief Antonio Guterres believes vaccine makers should allow other companies to produce versions of their COVID-19 shots, a U.N. spokesman said yesterday, as the World Trade Organisation discussed waiving patent rights to boost supply to developing countries. "The Secretary-General has often called for technology transfers and sharing of know-how and voluntary licensing or sharing of licensing," spokesman Stephane Dujarric said. WTO members are assessing signs of progress after seven months of talks on a proposal by South Africa and India to waive patent rights on COVID-19 vaccines. WTO decisions are based on consensus, so all 164 members…

May

06

2021

By The African Mirror

Egypt 4.9 million doses in May

COVID-19

EGYPT will receive another 4.9 million doses of different types of coronavirus vaccines in May. The earliest of these will be a shipment of 1.7 million doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine which is due to arrive next week as part of the global COVAX agreement, the Egyptian cabinet said in a statement. COVAX was established by the Geneva-based GAVI vaccine alliance and the World Health Organisation (WHO) for the equitable distribution of vaccines. Egypt will receive an additional shipment of 1.7 million AstraZeneca vaccines by the end of May, 1 million doses of the Chinese Sinopharm vaccine to arrive…