Zimbabwe, a southern African country with a stricken economy and health system, received on Monday 15 February a first batch of 200,000 vaccines against Covid-19, a donation from the Chinese manufacturer Sinopharm.
« We will not forget that in a situation of need, China reacted quickly, » Zimbabwean Vice President Constantino Chiwenga said at the airport, welcoming a « timely » donation and « further proof of the long bond of friendship and solidarity » between the two countries. The vaccines will still have to be checked by the local drug control authority before they can be administered.
Negotiations with other laboratories
Zimbabwe aims to vaccinate 10 million people, about two-thirds of the population, to achieve herd immunity. Ruined, however, the country has budgeted $100 million for vaccination, which will be free in the country. Zimbabwe officially has more than 35,000 cases of infection, including 1,400 deaths. Affected by a second wave of the pandemic that was more violent than the first, the country imposed a new containment last month, with a curfew between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m.
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