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Zimbabwe appears to have gone over the plateau with regard to the third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic given that the country has been registering low infection and death figures in recent weeks.

While at the peak, the country was recording about 50 deaths and more than 1 000 new cases on average every day up to the beginning of August, the figures have been on a steady decline with 13 deaths and 165 new cases reported on August 22.

The seven-day rolling average for new cases which was 366 on August 22, had dropped significantly from 1 664 on August 1.

July remains the worst month as far as infections and deaths are concerned, with 58 996 new cases and 1 743 deaths recorded.

The deaths were nearly as many as those that had been recorded since the pandemic was first reported in the country on March 20, 2020.

Amid the decline in figures, the country is also forging ahead with its vaccination programme and remains one of the leading lights on the African continent, thanks to easy access to vaccines from China.

As of Sunday, 2 312 417 people had received their first doses while 1 460 162 had been fully vaccinated.

The Zimbabwe Senior Hospital Doctors Association on Sunday applauded the Government for attaining the high vaccination figures.

“Great milestones reached in the Covid vaccination drive. More than 1 million citizens fully vaccinated and more than 2 million have received first dose,” the association said.

Although there has been a huge uptake of vaccines, there continues to be resistance to the drive by many people on various grounds, some of them religious, or simply out of fear of the unknown.

A health worker in rural Marondera, Mashonaland East Province, told Xinhua that the uptake there was very low, especially among the elderly, because many people feared that they could suffer irreversible side effects.

“Even community and traditional leaders who are supposed to be leading the programme are staying away,” he said.
Some people with underlying health conditions are also among those who are not keen on taking the vaccines, despite assurances from health experts that they will be safe.

On Monday, the Ministry of Health and Child Care reassured them that they could take the vaccines without any fear.

“Covid-19 vaccines may be administered to people with underlying conditions, like cancer, asthma, HIV, hypertension and diabetes, liver, and kidney problems and boost their immunity. They are encouraged to continue taking their medication as advised by their medical doctors,” the ministry said.

The College of Primary Care Practitioners of Zimbabwe and Zimbabwe College of Public Health Physicians on Monday also issued an advisory to the public and health practitioners on the high Covid-19 death rates, raising concern over the low uptake of vaccines by some prioritised groups.

“The number of deaths remains unacceptably high, with one in three people dying outside of health facilities. These deaths are commonest among the elderly and people living with chronic medical conditions such as diabetes, lung disease, high blood pressure and heart disease,” they said.

“We are particularly concerned that despite being prioritised, many elderly people and citizens living with chronic medical conditions are still not vaccinated.”

Zimbabwe had recorded 122,652 Covid-19 cases by Monday, with 4 249 deaths and 106  810 recoveries.

At the current rate of vaccinations, there is definitely no shortage as the number of available doses outnumbers that of those already administered by far, said authorities.

As of Saturday, the country had received 8  285 000 doses of Covid-19 vaccines. – Xinhua