NAIROBI, Kenya
Kenya will receive the
first batch of Covid-19 vaccines this week, with reports indicating the
consignment might land on Tuesday.
The news comes as the virus caseload continued to rise, with 325 more people testing positive on Sunday from a sample size of 3,282.
This
represents a positivity rate of 9.9 per cent, the highest rate ever recorded in
February.
Kenya
has ordered 24 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine, enough for 20 per cent
of the population.
However,
Gavi said it will initially supply just a few doses to cover frontline workers
and people with pre-existing health conditions (4,176,000 doses, according to a
schedule shared by Unicef, Gavi and the WHO).
In
a Cabinet meeting, it was revealed that the first batch of the vaccines will
be given to health care workers, frontline workers including security
personnel and teachers, vulnerable persons and hospitality sector workers.
The
government plans to reach at least 1.25 million Kenyans with the Covid-19 by
June in the first phase of the vaccination drive.
According
to a brief prepared by the Council of Governors and presented to the counties
ahead of rollout, deployment and vaccination plan for the programme will cost
Sh34 billion over 30 months.
The
death toll in the country due to Covid-19 continued to rise after two more
patients succumbed to the virus on Sunday, pushing the fatalities to 1,856.
In
a statement, the Health CS Mutahi Kagwe confirmed a total of 347 patients were
admitted while 1,495 patients were on home-based isolation and care.
“Fifty
eight patients are in the intensive care unit, 26 of whom on ventilator support
and 28 on supplemental oxygen. Four patients are under observation,” Kagwe
said.
Another
15 patients were separately on supplementary oxygen with 14 of them being in
the general wards and one in the high dependency unit.
“Today,
69 patients have recovered from the disease, 58 from the home-based isolation
and care while 11 are from various health facilities. Total recoveries now
stand at 86,678.”
The
second phase is expected to run from July 2021 to June 2022 during which 9.7
million more Kenyans will receive the jab depending on availability of the
vaccines.
The
target population in this phase will be Kenyans aged above 50 years and those
above 18 years of age with underlying health conditions.
Plans
by the ministry show the third phase of the vaccination drive could run
concurrently with the second phase, depending on availability of adequate
vaccines, with the hope of reaching 4.9 million people who will include all
other vulnerable populations.
“It
is important to note that if vaccines become available sooner than expected and
resources are available the targets may change,” Kagwe said.
Nairobi
recorded 207 new cases followed by Busia with 30, Mombasa 21, Machakos 14,
Kiambu 11, Kajiado nine while Uasin Gishu and Garisaa had five cases each.
Other
counties that recorded new infections include Meru and Tharaka Nithi with four,
Murang’a and Kercho with two cases each while Kirinyaga, Makueni, Migori,
Narok, Kakamega, Bungoma and West Pokot had one case each.
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