The Ministry of Health will this week start distributing the Covid-19 vaccines to all provincial centres for the targeted priority population to access them.
In a press statement issued to the media in Lusaka today, Minister of Health Jonas Chanda said the vaccines will be deployed to districts and administered to people identified as being at higher risk of contracting the Covid-19.
Dr. Chanda praised the general public for showing interest to get vaccinated and urged them not to panic but be calm as government is working round the clock to ensure that all eligible adults are vaccinated in line with the Covid-19 vaccination programme.
“I wish to encourage everyone to trust the process as we have the interest of everyone eligible at hand and as more vaccines come into the country. It is our appeal that all eligible adults above the age of 18 years will eventually be vaccinated,” he said.
The minister has since assured Zambians that government and other stakeholders have embarked on an enhanced sensitization campaign to ensure that frontline workers such as health workers, teachers, security forces and others access the vaccine.
Meanwhile, Dr. Chanda has warned of a third wave of the pandemic despite a drastic reduction in infections, hospitalisations and deaths in the country.
“We remain cautious of a possible upsurge and third wave of the pandemic, and we encourage everyone to continually comply to the prescribed public health measures and voluntarily and take the Covid-19 vaccine when the opportunity is presented to you,” said the minister.
He disclosed that 798 people were vaccinated on Sunday, April 18 in Lusaka, bringing the cumulative number of people inoculated against Covid-19 to 2,114 since the vaccination programme was launched five days ago.
Dr. Chanda said no severe and adverse effects have been detected and reported from people who got the Covid-19 jab so far.
And Dr. Chanda said 24 new cases of the Covid-19 virus were detected in seven districts out of 2,676 tests conducted in the last24 hours.
This brings the cumulative number of confirmed cases recorded to date to 90,942.
He said Kapiri Mposhi district recorded 12, Lusaka and Chibombo five each, Solwezi two, Nyimba, Isoka, Kitwe, Mansa and Mungwi districts each recorded one.
He said one Covid-19 patient died in Kitwe, bringing the cumulative Covid death toll to 1,236, with 691 deaths classified as Covid-19 deaths and 545 as Covid-19 associated deaths.
Dr. Chanda said 142 Covid-19 patients were discharged from both the Covid-19 isolation facilities and home management, taking the cumulative number of recoveries to 88,860.
He said the country currently has 48 patients admitted to Covid-19 isolation facilities with 37 on oxygen therapy and seven in critical condition.
He has since urged Zambians to continue to adhere to Covid-19 public health guidelines and measures by masking up, washing hands, maintaining physical distance, avoiding crowding and staying at home and seeking medical attention early.
Yet they will not tell you how many vaccines they have in stock that they have been donated, tell the people how many vaccines you have bought with their money ….countries are vacating 1000 times that figure.
This is good development. I can’t wait to get mine. We will vaccinate our people before the f00lish upnd diasporans get theirs there abroad. These f00ls don’t realise that the whlte man they worship, wants them out. Just watching George floyd trial and witnessing how these whlte people will do anything to justify getting rid of you there. Lobe
This is good development. I can’t wait to get mine. We will vaccinate our people before the f00lish upnd diasporans get theirs there abroad. These f00ls don’t realise that the whlte man they worship, wants them out. Just watching Ge0rge fl0yd trlal and witnessing how these whlte people will do anything to justlfy getting rid of you there. Iobe
You should try your best not to take ANYTHING trolls say seriously. NO matter how POORLY they behave, remember these people spend countless UNPRODUCTIVE hours trying to make people mad. They’re not WORTH your time of day.
There were 228,000 doses of AstraZeneca in the first consignment and Zambia claims to target 8m patients. AZ is a 2-dose vaccine so will require 16 million total doses. Yikes! The 228,000 received so far is not enough to cover 1.5% of the target and, worse, has taken MOH 5 days to administer 2,114 doses (422 a day). At this pace it will take 540 days to get through the first consignment (…if the doses don’t go bad by then) and 103 years to reach 8 million!
Clearly, MOH must pick up the pace – receiving a donation and dancing at the airport is not success! Get busy.
Don’t get ‘the vaccine’, especially the experimental mRNA injections from AstraZenica and Pfizer. They are suppressing news about negative effects – even so, many countries have banned them. These technologies do not have medium or long term safety studies. Knowledge of existing remedies is suppressed. And the motives of the likes of Bill Gates are highly suspect.
@Spuds, kkkkkkkk that’s fvcking hilarious calculation. That math is like PF’s money, you should replace the drunk Bank of Zambia governor.
When the vaccine is reaching to Ndola, copperbelt province.