First Covid-19 vaccines to arrive in Kenya on Tuesday
Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe has announced that the first consignment of the Covid-19 vaccine will arrive in the country on Tuesday.
Addressing the press in Nyeri on Sunday, Kagwe said the country is set to receive 1.02 million doses of Oxford/Astrazeneca vaccine on Tuesday and priority will be given to healthcare workers countrywide.
According to the CS, the 1.02 million doses will be the first batch of the 4.1 million expected with the country ultimately planning to import 24 million doses.
The vaccine will arrive in the country through Covid-19 Vaccines Global Access (Covax) facility.
Healthcare workers in 47 counties are among the targeted group to receive the jab first.
“Healthcare workers and other frontline workers in 47 counties will receive the vaccine in the county referral hospitals,” said Kagwe.
Last week, the government said that the first batch of the vaccines will arrive in the country in the first week of March and would be administered in order of priority.
Top on the list of those who will be vaccinated are healthcare workers, teachers, vulnerable persons, security personnel as well as employees of hospitality companies such as hotels.
In the first phase of the vaccination programme running between March and June, 1.25 million people are expected to be inoculated.
Also 9.7 million Kenyans above the age of 50 and those above 18 years with underlying conditions will be vaccinated in the second phase between July 2021 and June 2022.
In the final phase, 4.9 million Kenyans, especially the vulnerable populations, will receive the jab.
The Health Ministry said it will hire more than 23,000 healthcare workers, including 8,000 heath volunteers, to ensure the three-phased vaccination process runs smoothly.
On Sunday, the country recorded 325 new cases of Covid-19, raising the total number to 105,973 while the death toll rose to 1,856 after two patients succumbed to the virus.