Chronicle Editor
Sukulwenkosi Dube-Matutu, Chronicle Reporter
THE US has praised the Zimbabwe Government for registering significant progress in the Covid-19 vaccination programme.
According to the latest statistics from the Ministry of Health and Child Care a total of 3 million people have been vaccinated against Covid-19. As at 23 September 2021, Zimbabwe had 129 134 confirmed cases, including 121 841 recoveries and 4 600 deaths. 2,1 million people have received their second dose.
Zimbabwe’s free and voluntary vaccination programme aims to reach 10 million citizens to achieve herd immunity.
The country has been making great strides to protect its citizens against the Covid-19 pandemic in one of the most successful inoculation programmes in Africa, with at least 12 million Covid-19 vaccine doses already paid for.
President Mnangagwa’s administration set aside US$100 million for the purchase of vaccines.
Speaking in an interview during a tour of health centres in Bulawayo that are supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), US Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Mr Thomas Hastings said Zimbabwe was one of the African countries that has responded well in the wake of the pandemic.
“We have been very impressed by the process being done by the Government of Zimbabwe of vaccinating it’s people against Covid-19. Zimbabwe is one of the countries in Africa that has achieved the highest vaccination coverage. The last time I checked at the numbers around 12 percent of the population in Zimbabwe had been vaccinated against an average of four percent in Africa.
“So, the country is doing something great in that area, which is something important,” he said.
Government has engaged in a massive Covid-19 vaccination drive in order to attain herd immunity by end of the year. Some of the strategies include mobile outreach vaccination exercises being conducted across the country in order to reach more communities and cover remote parts of the country.
Government has also brought on board various departments, institutions and private clinics that are also conducting the vaccination exercise. Herd immunity is achieved when most of a population is immune to an infectious disease. This provides indirect protection those who are not immune.
Mr Hastings said last year the US Government provided US$340 million towards the country’s health sector and US$220 million was specifically for the support of HIV and Aids programmes. He said US$20 million was given to the Organisation for Public Health Interventions and Development (OPHID) to improve health centres in the country.
The ambassador said so far, the US Government has provided US$24 million to assist Government in the fight against Covid-19.
Mr Hastings conducted a tour of Princess Margaret Rose Clinic and Bambanani Clinic in the city centre to have an interpretation of intervention measures being undertaken utilising USAID funding. — @DubeMatutu
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