A top World Health Organization (WHO) official has warned that Africa is not at all prepared for an imminent outbreak of the third wave of COVID-19, reported CGTN Africa.
Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, the WHO’s Regional Director for Africa, issued the warning during the weekly online press conference in Geneva. She said the weak observance of preventive measures, increased population movement and interaction have heightened the risk of Covid-19 resurgence in many countries.
“The threat of a third wave in Africa is real and rising. Our priority is clear – it’s crucial that we swiftly get vaccines into the arms of Africans at high risk of falling seriously ill and dying of Covid-19,” Dr. Moeti said.
She warned that African countries must urgently boost critical care capacity to prevent health facilities from being overwhelmed, even as vaccine shipments to African nations have ground to a near halt.
“In the last two weeks, Africa recorded a 20 percent increase in cases compared with the previous fortnight,” Dr. Moeti said.
The WHO official said while many countries outside Africa have already vaccinated their high-priority groups and are considering vaccinating their children, African countries are unable to even follow up with second doses for high-risk groups.
Dr. Moeti appealed to countries that have reached significant vaccination coverage to release doses and keep the most vulnerable Africans “out of critical care.”
Notably, African nations have received only 50m vaccine doses, of which 31 million doses had been administered in 50 countries with a combined population of more than a billion. Just two percent of Africans to date have received at least one vaccine jab, while 24 percent of the world’s population is now vaccinated.
She also called for better equipment for the hospital and medical staff of African hospitals and clinics, which are still far from ready to cope with a huge rise in critically ill patients as coronavirus cases are expected to surge during the cold season.
