Iran Press/ Europe: Forty-five African countries have received vaccines, 43 of them have begun vaccinations and nearly 13 million of the 31.6 million doses delivered so far have been administered. The pace of vaccine rollout is, however, not uniform, with 93% of the doses given in 10 countries.
Vaccine rollout preparedness, including training of health workers, prelisting priority groups and coordination has helped some countries quickly reach a large proportion of the targeted high-risk population groups such as health workers. The 10 countries that have vaccinated the most have used at least 65% of their supplies.
“Although progress is being made, many African countries have barely moved beyond the starting line. Limited stocks and supply bottlenecks are putting COVID-19 vaccines out of reach of many people in this region,” said Dr Matshidiso Moeti, the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Director for Africa. “Fair access to vaccines must be a reality if we are to collectively make a dent on this pandemic.” 219
