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Patrick Chitumba, Midlands Bureau Chief
ALMOST 25 000 people have received the first dose of the Sinopharm and Sinovac vaccines in the Midlands as the vaccines are now available at all the public health facilities across the province

The province has received close to 110 000 vaccines, targeting 54 900 people.

At first the vaccination process was targeting frontline workers and those with underlying conditions but is now accessible to other people at their nearest health centres.

President Mnangagwa has hailed Zimbabwe’s ongoing Covid-19 vaccination programme, which is progressing well with the country having the eighth highest vaccination rate in Africa and third in the southern Africa region.

Zimbabwe’s free and voluntary vaccination programme aims to reach 10 million citizens to achieve herd immunity.
Acting Provincial Medical Director Dr Reginald Mhene said the vaccination statistics are taking long to be updated in the central register as evidenced by the low statistics.

“In total we have vaccinated 25 049 in the first dose and over 2 600 under the second dose. We have the Sinopharm and Sinovac vaccines,” he said.

Dr Mhene said the vaccination programme is progressing on well and urged people intending to be vaccinated to visit their nearest public health facilities.

“There have been delays in gathering data as some areas have poor networks but the vaccination programme is going on well. As a province we have received close to 110 000 vaccines, targeting 54 900 people,” he said while speaking during a Provincial Inter Ministerial Taskforce meeting in Gweru.

Dr Mhene said the vaccines have been distributed to all public health centres in the province.

“The vaccines can be accessed at all public health centres across the province by anyone willing to be vaccinated. We have a target of 54 900 people and we are on the right track,” he said.

Addressing the same meeting, the Minister of State Security Owen Ncube said law enforcement agencies must increase their enforcement of lockdown regulations by setting up more roadblocks.

He said there has been laxity in enforcing national lockdown restrictions that has seen increased traffic volumes in towns and along the highways.

“We continue to witness high volumes of human and vehicular traffic in towns and the highway and laxity on enforcement of lockdown rules and regulations. We appeal to stakeholders including the traditional chiefs to reach out to their subjects to avoid unnecessary travels to curb the spread of the virus,” said Minister Ncube.

He said Government was worried that roadblocks on highways have disappeared, a development he attributed to the increase in traffic.

“Today when I was coming here in the Midlands province, I saw a lot of roadblocks and I am sure they knew I was coming here. But the truth is that the roadblocks have been disappearing at a time we need to contain unnecessary travels. The roadblocks have been disappearing and we need police to control traffic on the highways. It’s not yet over and there is a need for us to be extra cautious to fight and curb the spread of the pandemic,” said Minister Ncube.