Namibia’s Health Ministry has been redistributing COVID-19 vaccine doses from slow-moving sites to those with faster uptake, especially to regions with high case incidence and deaths, such as Khomas, Erongo, Omaheke, Kharas, and Hardap, an official said Monday.
The move by the ministry is due to the fact that levels of COVID-19 vaccine uptake are uneven in different parts of the country, Namibia’s Health Ministry executive director, Ben Nangombe said.
“The ministry will continue vaccinating as many people as possible with the first dose, while the majority of the second doses will be given as soon as the next consignment is received in July,” he added.
According to Nangombe, this is in accordance with the WHO guidance in case of limited vaccine supply.
“It should be noted that the first dose of the vaccine already offers some degree of protection against severe disease, hospitalization, and death. Thus, vaccinating as many people as possible with the first dose will lead to the protection of the larger proportion of the population against severe illness, hospitalization, and death,” he added.
The total number of COVID-19 vaccine doses received in the country to date is 197,200. Of these, 135,058 doses have been administered as of June 24, he said.
Follow our socials Whatsapp, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Google News.
