Schools vaccination mop up underway Vaccination

Rumbidzayi Zinyuke

Senior Reporter

The many secondary schools in Harare Metropolitan, Midlands and Manicaland with Covid-19 vaccination rates below 70 percent will see a special effort next month to boost coverage and help ensure the safety and health of pupils and teachers.

Schools in other provinces have higher rates of vaccination but most of the secondary schools with vaccination rates below 70 percent are in these three provinces.

The national vaccination campaign was expanded in February this year to include the children aged 12 to 15, with 16 and 17 year-olds getting the nod late last year. The extensions followed approval from the Paediatric Association of Zimbabwe, a grouping of specialists in child health, after the considered all factors including vaccine safety.

The initial move into schools saw the O-level and A-level examination forms being protected and the February extension took into account those largely in Grade 7 to those moving into Form 4 this year.

Now about 73 percent of secondary schools in the country have reported vaccination rates of above 70 percent.

But Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Monica Mutsvangwa said after yesterday’s Cabinet meeting that schools from the three provinces had reported lower average vaccination rates.

“On the vaccination coverage in schools, Cabinet reports that of the 2 615 registered secondary schools nationwide, a total of 1 942 (73 percent) have reached a vaccination coverage of 70 percent or more. Schools that have not reached the 70 percent vaccination coverage are mostly in Harare Metropolitan, Manicaland and Midlands provinces,” she said.

The first phase of the expanded programme ran from March to May, with the first shots, while the second phase was conducted in May, basically for the second shots.

This means that all learners in this age group who took the jabs have received the two doses of the vaccine to gain reasonable coverage.

The vaccination desks would be set up as schools register learners for the reopening of schools in September.

“Cabinet agreed that schools in these provinces must set up vaccination desks as they register learners for the schools reopening in September 2022.

“This approach is expected to help identify and mop up all secondary children who have not been vaccinated and hence ensure that they are all vaccinated before they resume classes,” she added.

Government is targeting to vaccinate at least 70 percent of the total population to get reasonable rate of coverage but so far, 6 401 018 first doses of the Covid-19 vaccine had been administered by August 22.

A total of 4 761 840 people had received their second dose, and 979 244 their third dose. This is despite the large stocks of vaccine and the mobilisation of vaccine teams by the Minisitry of Health and Child Care to handle far higher rates of vaccination than now seen.

Since the outbreak of the pandemic in 2020, the country has recorded a cumulative 256 628 Covid-19 cases with 250 895 recoveries and 5 592 deaths.

The recovery rate was 98 percent, with 141 active cases.

“A total of 12 new admissions were recorded during the week, and one patient was admitted to the intensive care unit at Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals in Harare. The majority of those who were admitted in hospital had not been vaccinated, hence the nation is encouraged to get vaccinated.

“Cabinet notes that the pandemic continues to be brought under control in most provinces, even though Midlands, Masvingo and Matabeleland South had recorded small increases in new cases over the past 14 days,” said Minister Mutsvangwa.

She noted that although the country still had no cases of monkeypox, the Government remained on high alert for any cases of the disease and was strengthening surveillance and information dissemination.

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