Botswana COVID vaccine rollout on course

Govt target is 64 percent by Dec 2021 Only 4 percent of Africa’s 1.3 billion populations fully vaccinated

Botswana has surpassed the World Health Organisation ( WHO) set share of the total population who received full doses of Covid- 19 vaccines.

WHO set the benchmark target of 10 percent this year, but its latest update on September 30, 2021 shows that only 15 African countries including Botswana have passed the set mark. Botswana is placed at ninth position with 14 percent, together with Zimbabwe and South Africa. The trio is ahead of Rwanda, Mauritania, Equatorial Guinea and Sao Tome and Principe who have vaccinated between 13 and 11 percent respectively. Seychelles leads the pack with 72 percent followed by Mauritius and Morocco with 62 and 48 percent respectively. Other countries ahead of Botswana are Lesotho, Eswatini, Comoros, Cape Verde and Tunisia whose percentages range between 15 and 28 percent. WHO set this benchmark after considering numerous issues including the difficulty of African countries to get vaccines, as well as the fact that rich countries that produce vaccines were giving priority to local consumption.

So far WHO records show that only four percent of Africa’s population of about 1.3 billion is fully vaccinated. Although there is vaccine hesitancy, it is at low levels. It is clearly evidenced by the overcrowding experienced at vaccine centres where many are turned back as a result of vaccines running out.

The overcrowding has been attributed to aggressive public education campaigns. In comparison, other neighbouring countries like South Africa have high levels of vaccine hesitancy when compared to Botswana.

In South Africa, few people turn up at vaccination centres, with the centres remaining empty in most cases. This has resulted in people from other countries like Botswana taking trips to South Africa for vaccination, where even the eligible age is reduced to 18 years. Lately, President Cyril Ramaphosa started an aggressive vaccine campaign named Vooma which is aimed at helping South Africa to ensure that 70 percent of the population is vaccinated by end of December 2021. Zimbabwe is one country doing well in vaccination more or less at the same level as Botswana. But unlike Botswana, it long started vaccinating while Botswana was making vaccine procurements through platforms such as COVAX. Zimbabwe received huge donations from China and Russia. It is mainly using only vaccines from the two countries that are Sinovac and Sputnik. There are suggestions that they actually started using the two before the vaccines were approved by the WHO. But Botswana on the other hand bought most of the vaccines it received. In an interview with the Chief Public Relations officer, Dr. Christopher Nyanga said that the national COVID- 19 vaccination target for Botswana is 1 531 498. The number includes foreign nationals. He said the difference of 900 000 would be those who are below the age of 18 years who cannot be vaccinated. So far the COVID- 19 vaccination national uptake is 34.2 percent for those who took the first does and this means the number of people who received at least the first dose are 523 847, while the number of people fully vaccinated is 352 827 giving a national COVID- 19 vaccination coverage of 23.0 percent. Nyanga said so far, Botswana has received more than 1.5 million doses, of which 760 000 doses were donated and more than 830 000 were bought through the COVAX facility. “This is a great achievement for an African country by any standard”. Nyanga said they are expecting up to three million doses which government has bought between October and December 2021. “Our target is to vaccinate 64 percent of the targeted population by December 2021,” Nyanga said. With all the vaccines that they have in hand, more than 800 000 people would be vaccinated by mid November 2021 and this will make them to achieve 57 percent. “In our view this means the 64 percent would be achievable. We are targeting that by March 2022 we should reach 80 percent, then we will be targeting those who are 18 years old and this is likely to take place in a fortnight time”. This week Minister of Health and Wellness Dr. Edwin Dikoloti addressed the nation on what the end of the SoE means. He said since SOE has now ended his Ministry has a legal framework in place to facilitate when there is need. He said the Public Health ( Notification of Disease) COVID Order 2021, declares COVID- 19 a notifiable disease and instructs any persons, authorities, agencies and Departments outside the Ministry of Health and Wellness, to notify the health authorities of any positive COVID- 19 case detected in their facilities. Further that the Public Health ( Prevention of Introduction and Spread of COVID- 19) Order, provides for the prevention of introduction of COVID- 19 into Botswana by international travellers. The purpose of the Order is to restrict entry into Botswana only to travellers who present a valid 72- hour negative PCR test result.

He said testing remains available at ports of entry for those who may present expired test results, or may not present any test results. Any traveller testing positive at these ports of entry shall be isolated within the District at their own cost or repatriated, as may be applicable. Dikoloti said the Public Health ( COVID- 19 Control Measures) Regulations 2021; lays down control measures to curb the spread of COVID- 19. Such control measures include compulsory face coverings, social distancing, hand hygiene and disinfection of surfaces.