vaccine roll-out - The African Mirror

Feb

2021

Namibia to roll out AstraZeneca vaccine

NAMIBIA will push ahead with the roll-out of the AstraZeneca vaccine despite neighbouring South Africa halting distribution after concerns over its effectiveness against a new variant, the government said yesterday. The nation of 2.5 million people recorded more than 36,000 COVID-19 cases with 394 deaths, with its mining and tourism-depended economy severely hit by the pandemic. Health and Social Services Minister Kalumba Shanghula said investigations were still underway to establish whether the new COVID-19 variant is present in Namibia and the extent of its prevalence. "In the meantime, our preparations for COVID-19 vaccine roll-out are ongoing," he said. South Africa…

Feb

2021

By The African Mirror

Rural South African nurses fear being forgotten in vaccine roll-out

COVID-19

SOUTH African nurses called on the government on Monday to ensure overstretched workers in rural clinics and hospitals get access to COVID-19 vaccines as the hard-hit country received its first batch of doses. Rural nurses have reported shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE) such as face masks during the pandemic and - with few detailed announcements about inoculation plans for remote areas - many fear they could be last in line. “Healthcare workers’ hands are full as we speak, we are very concerned about overstretching them to breaking point,” said Sibongiseni Delihlazo, spokesman for the Democratic Nursing Organisation of South Africa (DENOSA),…

Jan

2021

By The African Mirror

Enthusiasm over COVID-19 vaccines tempered by talk of protectionism and hoarding

COVID-19

ANDRIUS SYTAS EUROPE has urged pharmaceutical companies to honour their commitments to supply coronavirus vaccines, as delivery cuts and delays dim hopes of a quick fix to COVID-19 and increase talk of protectionism and hoarding. Countries around the world, anxious to reboot economies and restart travel by the European summer, hailed the rapid development of vaccines as the great escape from the year-long pandemic, which has killed more than 2.1 million people. But vaccine roll-outs in the European Union have been slow compared with countries in some other regions and fraught with problems, not least interruptions to supply chains. AstraZeneca,…