COVID vaccines: “Africa needs 150m doses each month to meet target”

By Agence de Presse Africaine Last updated Sep 25, 2021

APA-Addis Ababa Africa needs 150 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine each month from current around 20 million in order to fully vaccinate 70 percent of its people by September 2022, the World Health Organization said in a statement seen by APA on Friday. “The global COVID-19 summit was a dose of hope for Africa and we commend pledges to share more vaccines, save…

APA-Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) Africa needs 150 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine each month from current around 20 million in order to fully vaccinate 70 percent of its people by September 2022, the World Health Organization said in a statement seen by APA on Friday.

“The global COVID-19 summit was a dose of hope for Africa and we commend pledges to share more vaccines, save lives and build back better. It is the kind of international solidarity that will help to end the pandemic.

“The 70 percent target was agreed at the global COVID-19 summit on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly this week.

“This is about life and death for potentially millions of Africans so there is no time to waste in getting these shipments moving,” said Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa.

The COVAX Facility, the global platform to ensure equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines, has been forced to slash planned deliveries to Africa by 25 percent this year, due to global supply shortages and export bans.

COVAX shipments are still coming into African countries — with 4 million doses received in the past week.

However, only a third of the vaccines that wealthy countries pledged to share with Africa by the end of 2021 have been received.

Statistics from the Africa Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) indicates that 136.3 million COVID-19 vaccine doses had been administered in the continent as of Wednesday, while 4.06 percent of the population is fully immunized.

MG/as/APA