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Ruth Butaumocho African Agenda
AS the gong rang for the last time on December 31 signalling the end of the year, the world erupted in rapturous celebrations.
Although the celebrations naturally were held hourly, throughout the day because of the time zones that did not dampen the celebratory mood that seized the majority of global citizens who were eager to bury the past 12 moons into the chasm of history.
Having witnessed death in huge proportion and watched millions being made jobless, as companies struggled to remain afloat, thousands of people really wanted to forget about 2021.
Dreams were tattered and iron hopes shredded into smithereens, as Covid-19 took its toll with brazen ruthlessness and cruel intentions.
Economies and livelihoods were decimated. A recent Forbes article reports that a record 4,5 million Americans quit jobs in November as employers struggled to retain their workers.
In light of such sad developments, many had been hoping for a Covid-free year.
However, that dream might be far from being a reality amid revelations that Covid-19 is far from over.
Barely a week into the New Year, the world is under siege from alarming new Covid-19 infections, which seem to be emerging stronger with new variants.
On Monday, France discovered a new Covid variant IHU with 46 mutations amid 271 000 coronavirus infections, biggest one-day jump on record.
The new strain, named IHU, was discovered in the southwest of France and, according to multiple news outlets, intensive care and hospital admissions have been increasing in that region in recent days.
Elsewhere several African countries are battling four figure Covid-19 daily new infections due to the highly transmissible Omicron variant, while deaths have also peaked in the last few weeks.
Whilst Africa’s case count might still be low, compared with many outbreaks elsewhere in the world, forestalling major flare-ups in 2022 would be important, if the continent is to wither economic and social challenges that come with Covid-19.
While we remain cautiously optimistic that deaths and severe illness will remain low in the current wave, it is incumbent on every nation to take stock of preventative strategies, and improve them if the battle with Covid is to be won.
Governments need to continue with their vaccination programmes and push for herd immunity in the first quarter to reduce the rate of infections, hospitalisations and deaths.
The festive break, affected vaccination programmes that had been going on smoothly as people joined in the festivities, momentarily forgetting about the misery the virus brought to their doorsteps.
An immediate resumption of the vaccination programmes is needed to ensure that more people get the jab, to insulate many against the effects of the new Covid-19 variants, which are easily transmissible and in some instance deadly.
The resumption of vaccination programme should also be complemented with intense awareness programmes on the importance of getting a jab.
With reports coming from the World Health Organisation (WHO) that Covid-19 might cease after 2024, getting vaccinated becomes the most strategic and ideal health decision to take, in the face of more outbreaks of different variants during that period.
Other countries have already started administering booster Covid-19 vaccine shots.
For booster shots, the World Health Organisation is on record urging the fully vaccinated to take the booster Covid-19 doses, whose objective is to restore the vaccine effectiveness.
Rwanda, Kenya, Zambia and Zimbabwe are among several countries that have since started giving coronavirus-vaccine booster doses, targeting different age groups, as well as focusing on frontline workers.
In Zimbabwe, by Monday, close to 6 000 people had already received the boosters with more expected to get the jab, as awareness on Covid-19 grows.
The decision by many countries to urge its people to the booster shots is consistent with the advice coming from medical experts who are saying one is effectively protected against severe Covid-19 illness, hospitalisation and in some instances, death.
Outside the booster jab, it is still imperative to observe WHO safety regulations of masking up, sanitising, social distancing and washing hands thoroughly under running water with soap for 20 seconds.
While the message of dangers associated with Covid-19 is clear, countries would need to do more to achieve behavioural change and addressing problems associated with complacency.
With over two million globally having succumbed to Covid-19 since 2020, some 220 000 of those deaths having been recorded in Africa, it is sad and unfortunate that they are still people who still regard the pandemic as a myth and a disease for the elite.
Such retrogressive thinking and attitude should not be allowed to continue and strict measures should be put in place to ensure that those who disregard laid down regulations should be brought to book.
The various new Covid variants that are emerging now and then call for vigilance and community ownership of the preventative strategies so that people can speak with one voice.
Right now, there is a strong divide between those promoting the vaccination and the anti-vaccinations, who are parroting highly mischievous and misleading information about the vaccines, which have been proved to be effective in the fight against Covid-19.
The other danger is that the world would need to out-rightly reject the “mild infection” narrative that most people are now holding on to which could turn to be dangerous and misleading.
Complacency and peddling of such information should be addressed to ensure that people get the correct information and necessary preventative measures against Covid-19, if the world is to win the war against this nemesis.
Online Reporter