Morocco’s Health Ministry on Tuesday said it has vaccinated over four million people since the launch of the COVID-19 vaccination campaign began at the end of January, reported Africa News. The North African country started the vaccination campaign on January 28 after the arrival of the first shipment of China’s Sinopharm vaccines.
Moroccan King Mohammed VI was the first Moroccan to receive a coronavirus vaccine to encourage public confidence in the vaccines.
More than 480,000 people in Morocco have been infected with coronavirus since the first case was reported in March 2020. The health ministry reported 508 new Covid-19 cases on Tuesday, taking the tally to 486,833. Over 8,500 people have died from contracting the virus so far.
On Monday, the Morocco government suspended all flights to and from Poland, Norway, Finland, Greece, Lebanon, and Kuwait to protect itself from new coronavirus variants. The latest flight suspension brings the total number of countries affected by air restrictions to 26.
The government has also extended the state of health emergency measure until April 10, with a night curfew until mid-March. The country’s borders are still closed even though regular flights operate.
The free vaccination campaign aims to immunize those over 18, or around 25 million people with a view to gradually returning to normal life.
Morocco is currently using the British AstraZeneca and Chinese Sinopharm vaccines but, local media reports claim the health ministry intends to diversify its supplies with the Russian vaccine Sputnik V and the American Johnson and Johnson.
With just over 500 new cases detected daily, the global coronavirus pandemic seems to be on the verge of decline in Morocco but fewer screening tests are carried out there.
The health crisis had a disastrous impact on the country’s economy. The unemployment rate rose to 11.9% in 2020, as compared to 9.2% recorded in the previous year, due to the health crisis aggravated by several seasons of drought.
