(3 minutes read)
· A top Kenyan pathologist has warned of “vaccine apartheid”, which can lead to increased deaths as the East African country continues to experience a high number of infections and fatalities
· The continent has poor record of vaccination with less than 2% of the population of 1.3 billion is only fully vaccinated against COVID-19
· Only two countries in Africa have the capacity to produce vaccines -South Africa and Senegal
· Countries like Kenya and Egypt have the technical capacity but they never really invested in it
A top Kenyan pathologist has warned of “vaccine apartheid”, which can lead to increased deaths as the East African country continues to experience a high number of infections and fatalities. The continent has poor record of vaccination with less than 2% of the population of 1.3 billion is only fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
Doctors and nurses working in hospitals in countries such as Kenya have suffered continued pressure due to the government’s lack of investment in vaccines. Vaccine shortages continue to plague many African countries and hospitals in Kenya are seeing more deaths due to COVID-19
Only two countries in Africa have the capacity to produce vaccines -South Africa and Senegal. Countries like Kenya and Egypt have the technical capacity but they never really invested in it.
Importantly, the Africa director for the World Health Organization recently lamented the richer western nations, accusing them of hoarding vaccines. They called for equitable distribution of jabs. More than 7.3 million cases, including more than 186,000 deaths, have been confirmed across the continent. The health systems are straining to provide medical oxygen and other care.
