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NAIROBI. – Kenya announced yesterday that nearly 840 000 Covid-19 vaccines received through donations had expired, blaming hesitancy and a short shelf life for jabs going unused.
The doses of AstraZeneca were donated to Kenya through the global Covax vaccine equity initiative, the health ministry said in a statement.
“Any expired dose represents a missed opportunity to save a life,” the ministry said.
About 30 percent of the target population in Kenya has been vaccinated against the coronavirus but uptake has slowed considerably in recent weeks as prevalence of the disease has tapered off.
Early last month, some 252 000 vaccines were being administered per day across the country but that figure has plunged to as low as 30 000.
Kenya has received more than 27 million Covid-19 vaccines but only administered around 17.3 million shots.
The government aims to double vaccinate 27 million Kenyans by the end of the year. – AFP
Online Reporter