The Southern African Development Community (SADC) on Tuesday praised the Zambian government Tuesday for having a peaceful transition of power, reported Africa News.
On Monday, the Zambian election commission declared opposition leader Hakainde Hichilema as the winner of the presidential election after he defeated Edgar Lungu, who had been in power for six years.
Notably, the outgoing Zambian President Lungu had claimed the election was not free or fair, while votes were being counted. But on Tuesday, hours after the vote was declared, he conceded defeat and promised to peacefully hand overpower.
“The pattern of peaceful transitions of power we have been seeing in our region in recent years, … (with) Zambia being the latest member to embody that, is worthy of global acclaim and our applause,” said Malawian President Lazarus Chakwera during the launch of the SADC summit.
He thanked all the leaders and people of Zambia for the peaceful polls.
The Malawian President said that inequality in access to Covid-19 vaccines is no longer acceptable. He called on wealthy nations to stop hoarding vaccines. He said the vaccine belongs to all nations, irrespective of who developed it.
According to data, only less than 2% of Africa’s population is fully vaccinated. The number is too low as compared to the rest of the world. The SADC chairperson attributed the slow vaccination drive to inequalities and disparities in the production and distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine.
The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) said the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Africa reached 7,314,632 as of Tuesday afternoon. The African Union’s 16-member healthcare body said the death toll from the pandemic stands at 184,565.
South Africa, Morocco, Tunisia, and Ethiopia have reported the most number of COVID-19 cases in the continent. Southern Africa is the most affected region, followed by the northern and eastern parts of the continent.
