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THE fear and confusion surrounding the Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine donated by China and brought into the country this week reflects the failure by government to relay information to the citizens. Health practitioners, teachers and trade unionists have expressed fears over being used as guinea pigs to prove the efficacy of the vaccine amid reports that it had resulted in complications in some countries it has been rolled out. Among some of the concerns, the drug has not been approved by the World Health Organisation (WHO), but is still undergoing tests and the highest efficacy rate it has had is 75% compared to other drugs that are now in wide use, AstraZeneca, Modena, Pfizer, the Russian Sputnik 5 which have had higher efficacy rates. Suddenly, the Sinopharm drug received amid much pomp and fanfare, is now presenting more headaches for government than solutions to the COVID-19 pandemic that has wreaked havoc in the country, claiming more than 1 400 lives since March last year. Government can only blame itself for the dearth of information around the Chinese vaccine. Comments by the head of monitoring and evaluation in the Health and Child Care ministry, Robert Mudyiradima, which circulated widely on social media, to the effect that they still didn’t have full knowledge of the vaccine have worsened the uncertainty over its safety. A well-organised and detailed information campaign about the drug will go a long way in allaying fears over the safety of the vaccine. This should include the public vaccination of President Emmerson Mnangagwa and his two deputies Constantino Chiwenga and Kembo Mohadi. Government’s messaging deficit has long been its Achilles heel and could severely hamper its efforts to curb the pandemic. Its pathetic messaging and double standards have not only been limited to the Sinopharm vaccine. Doesn't it raise eyebrows that while government is preaching the need to limit movement of people and public gatherings, the ruling Zanu PF party continues to hold face-to-face meetings? The glaring double standards were also laid bare when First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa ignored her husband’s order to avoid public gatherings by organising a cooking contest in Chinhoyi in blatant defiance of the national lockdown regulations. That this was held a day after government warned citizens to brace for more restrictions in light of the highly fatal and fast-spreading South African variant, not only exhibits absence of leadership, but is also an insult to the country’s citizens. With such deplorable messaging, the government can forget about successfully curbing the COVID-19 pandemic.
A November 26 letter from the presidency asked the head of Uganda's national drug authority to 'work out a mechanism' to clear the importation of the vaccines.
China has about five COVID-19 vaccine candidates at different levels of trials. It was not clear what vaccine was being imported into Uganda.
One of the frontrunners is the Sinopharm vaccine developed by the Beijing Institute of Biological Product, a unit of Sinopharm’s China National Biotec Group (CNBG).
On Wednesday, the United Arab Emirates said the vaccine has 86% efficacy, citing an interim analysis of late-stage clinical trials.
China has used the drug to vaccinate up to a million people under its emergency use program.
On Tuesday, Morocco said it was ordering up to 10 million doses of the vaccine.
Record cases
Uganda on Monday registered 701 new COVID-19 cases, the highest-ever daily increase, bringing its national count to 23,200.
The new cases were out of the 5,578 samples tested for the novel coronavirus over the past 24 hours, the country's health ministry said in a statement.
Tuesday's tally was 606, the second-highest ever number of new infections, bringing the cumulative number of confirmed cases in the east African country to 23,860.
Health authorities have blamed ongoing election campaigns which have drawn huge crowds for the rise in infections.
A GROUP of academics have published a paper exploring whether the government could make a COVID vaccine compulsory. They suggest that such a step may be necessary. They advise that COVID vaccination could be a condition of release from lockdown and related restrictions.
South Africa currently has a cumulative COVID-19 caseload of 1 494 119 along with 48 313 deaths and 1 494 119 recoveries.
On Wednesday (August 12), the City Girls appeared on The Breakfast Club morning radio show to discuss their latest album, City On Lock, and the journey through the music industry where they spoke on some of the biases they’ve encountered.
Nigerian authorities have warned on Friday against the circulation of fake coronavirus vaccines in the country, where 10 million real doses of the shots are expected in March.
PRIVATE commuter omnibus operators and small cars, popularly known as mushikashika, are back on the road in most cities and towns defying President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s ban on their operations during national lockdown.
Mnangagwa (pictured) declared Zupco the sole public transport operator during the indefinite lockdown.
I have received several reports that there was activity at various night spots including the popular Showground over the weekend and that private transport operators, especially those plying Chiredzi-Save or Chiredzi-Checheche routes, are back on the road,” he said.
The Zimbabwe Passengers Association (ZPA) called on government to lift the ban on private commuter omnibus due to escalating public transport shortages following the eased lockdown regulations.
The President maintained the ban on commuter omnibuses, but called on private operators to join the Zupco franchise.
The World Health Organisation recognises the need to include women in outbreaks preparedness and response such as the global Covid-19 policy spaces but other than the disaggregation of the disease burden by gender, response measures have not addressed the gendered impacts.
During the West African outbreak of Ebola virus disease, women’s voices were ignored thus resources for reproductive and sexual health were diverted to the emergency response, contributing to a rise in maternal mortality.
During the Zika virus outbreak, women did not have autonomy over their sexual and reproductive lives, which was compounded by their inadequate access to health services.
Gendered measures should include: disaggregation of the coronavirus data by sex, age, and disability; country strategic plans for preparedness and response must be grounded in strong gender analysis; strengthening leadership and meaningful participation of women in addressing Covid-19 including budgeting.
Paying attention to respiratory illnesses in pregnant women; issuing clinical guidelines for treating pregnant women with Covid-19 infection; addressing the growing mental health and psychosocial needs of females; providing financial incentives for families and girls to resume their education when the confinement ends.
[Premium Times] UN Chief says the world must unite to make coronavirus vaccines available to everyone, everywhere.
South Africa, along with all southern hemisphere nations, is reporting almost no influenza cases so far this winter.
With the European Union unveiling a massive recovery plan to step up its emergence from the crisis, the US figure was a sobering reminder of the devastation being wreaked around the globe by a virus that only emerged late last year.
Nevertheless, most US states moved toward reopening restaurants and businesses, cheered on by President Donald Trump, who is eager to see the economic pain of the crisis mitigated as he seeks re-election.
The United States remains the hardest-hit nation, with President Donald Trump weathering heavy criticism for his handling of the crisis -- and for not wearing a mask in public despite his administration's recommendations.
Trump's principal preoccupation has been for a quick turnaround of the badly battered US economy, and he has pressured local and state leaders to ease lockdowns.
Even as many economies emerge from the drastic lockdowns, a joint study by Save the Children and UNICEF warned Wednesday that the pandemic could push as many as 86 million more children into poverty by the end of 2020.
South African president and African Union (AU) chairperson Cyril Ramaphosa says the deadly coronavirus outbreak has affected both developed and developing countries, but it's the latter who are expected to suffer the most.
Ramaphosa delivered a short virtual address to the 73rd World Health Assembly on Monday and, while it experienced numerous technical glitches, the South African president still managed to raise concerns over the presence of Covid-19 on the continent.
\"Africa is extremely vulnerable to the ravages of this virus and needs every possible support and assistance, including much-needed resources, to bolster its response and offset a potentially devastating social and economic fallout,\" said Ramaphosa.
The South African leader also affirmed his country's support for the World Health Organisation (WHO), which he said had been key in guiding the international response to the pandemic.
\"The WHO has been instrumental in providing guidance and support to African governments with early detection of the pandemic, training health workers and strengthening surveillance in communities,\" Ramaphosa told the global assembly.
The 2020 World No Tobacco Day is unique and historic as it comes at the time when countries across the world are on lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The country has banned imports and sales of tobacco or tobacco-related products along with other emergency regulations during the country's declared six-month state of public emergency.
The motivation to ban the sales of tobacco and tobacco related products in Botswana was informed by scientific evidence that smoking damages human lungs and other body organs.
The ban on the sale of tobacco products and any calls by governments for smokers to quit during the COVID-19 pandemic need to be accompanied by initiatives that aid smokers in this course of action.
Additionally, and in line with the ideals of the 2020 World No Tobacco Day, the government of Botswana must strictly enforce the provisions of its Control of Smoking Act.
Chairperson of the African Union (AU) President Cyril Ramaphosa said efforts to secure a COVID-19 vaccine for the continent were always collaborative
BATSA have accused Fita's members of benefiting from the cigarette ban, as they lament their cataclysmic drop in market performance.
