Category: News

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Addressing vaccine hesitancy: need to urgently tackle myths, misinformation

ZIMBAMBWE needs to urgently address the Covid-19 vaccine hesitancy that is discouraging ordinary people from taking up the life-saving jabs at a time the number of people dying from the contagious disease continues to surge on a daily basis. The number of people dying daily, about a 100 a day, is horrific and must be stopped forthwith through proactive measures by government, communities and other able stakeholders.

The Community Working Group on Health (CWGH) is worried that people continue to die because they are reluctant to receive the free inoculations because of the widely- held myths, misconception as well as misinformation peddled mainly through the social media that the vaccines are not safe. The rate of vaccine uptake in some communities is frightening low and it calls for urgent proactive actions to encourage people to freely accept vaccination. In wake of this hesitancy and the mounting deaths, the CWGH would like to call on the government to urgently institute national Covid-19 vaccine literacy programmes to specifically debunk the myths and deconstruct the misinformation that has resulted in unnecessary deaths in the country. CWGH has established that a number of people still believe the vaccines can result in serious health complications later, death or infertility, theories that have been proven false.

This can also be achieved if the government works closely with trusted and influential sources of information which include community leaders such a traditional leaders, teachers, businesspeople, pastors and community-based organizations that have been sources of credible information for the local people for a long time. People believe what
they get from people or sources they trust. CWGH would like to call upon all influential people and community-based organizations to influence their people in their communities to accept and embrace vaccines because they are not toxic as claimed by purveyors of false information. People have a tendency to believe what they read on social media which in most cases would not be true.

This is no time to play politics or gaining religious advantages by exploiting people’s ignorance or mistrust of certain issues. One life lost is one too many as vaccines are safe, effective an save lives As an organization deeply rooted in the communities, CWGH has established that community leadership in an aspect of life is an important contributor to social development. Elected officials and community leaders play significant roles in times of disasters like the Covid-19 pandemic in both receiving and delivering messages and information. Apart from releasing regular information to the general public, CWGH would like to urge the government, through the various Covid-19 committees, to give regular briefs and updates to the community leaders, who would act as ambassadors and champions in the fight against the pandemic.

We would want to reiterate that community leaders are valuable sources of information and government agencies must always seek to create a relationship with them to facilitate the exchange of information. The Community Working Group on Health (CWGH) is a network of national membership based civil society and community based organizations who aim to collectively enhance community participation in health in Zimbabwe.

_____________________
Itai Rusike (Mr)
Executive Director

Community Working Group on Health (CWGH)
4 O’connor Crescent, Cranborne, Eastlea, Harare, Zimbabwe

Mobile: +263 77236 3991
Tel: +263-4-573285|573286
Email: itai@cwgh.co.zw
Website: www.cwgh.co.zw
“Health is Your Right and Responsibility”

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Zimbabwe Reimposes a Lockdown to Contain Rising Coronavirus Cases

Credits: Voice of America

UPDATE 

by Columbus Mavhunga

Zimbabwe’s government on Monday is reintroducing a lockdown as a way to contain rising coronavirus cases in the southern African nation.

Announcing the reintroduction of the lockdown Saturday night on national television, Vice President Constantino Chiwenga said complacency had resulted in a recent spike in cases of the coronavirus responsible for the COVID-19 disease.

“Our vaccination against in COVID-19 is going on very well,” he said. “The country is however experiencing a surge in cases. The last seven days has seen 596 new cases and 26 deaths, as compared to the same period in May last year where we had 132 cases and six deaths.”

Chiwenga, who doubles as Zimbabwe’s health minister, said all gatherings except for funerals would be banned comes Monday. Only 30 people would be allowed at funerals. He did not indicate when the new measures would be reviewed.

Itai Rusike, head of nonprofit Community Working Group on Health in Zimbabwe, commended the government for tightening the lockdown to avoid a “pending third wave disaster.”

“Yes, this may look a bit draconian, but the measures are still necessary if we are to save lives. It is important that the people of Zimbabwe should embrace these measures. It is also important for Zimbabweans that are eligible for vaccination to come forward and willingly get vaccinated if the country is to move forward towards achieving herd immunity of vaccinating at least 60% of the population which translates to about 10 million Zimbabweans,” he said.

Zimbabwe’s vaccination effort against the infection has recently been hit by shortages of the shots. But officials say the country still has stocks of the 1.7 million vaccines it has received from China, Russia and India since February.

Last week, Zimbabwe received 25,000 Sputnik V doses from Russia. That was a few days after it rejected Johnson & Johnson vaccines from the African Union, financed by the African Export-Import Bank. Zimbabwe has 39,852 confirmed coronavirus infections and 1,632 deaths, according to the Johns Hopkins University, which tracks the global outbreak.

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Zimbabwe Appeals for Vaccine Funding Amid Surge in COVID-19 Cases

Credits: Voice of America

by Columbus Mavhunga

Zimbabwe’s government is asking for help from the country’s corporate sector, citizens and other well-wishers to fund the import of COVID-19 vaccines. The southern African nation is falling behind in the battle with the coronavirus, despite imposing a 12-hour curfew last month as part of a lockdown to deal with the pandemic, which has infected about 35,000 people in Zimbabwe and caused 1,300 deaths, most of them this year alone.

Itai Rusike, executive director of the nonprofit Community Working Group on Health in Zimbabwe said in an interview he was shocked by the extension of the “usual begging bowl” when President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government has been lately “bragging of a surplus budget.” He said citizens and companies in Zimbabwe are feeling the impact of the slowed economy, so they cannot donate for COVID-19 vaccine imports.

“So, let us use the budget surplus money to purchase the vaccines. We also have the 2% tax on mobile money transactions,” said Rusike. “We also have the health levy. These funds should be earmarked for the vaccine purchases for now. Even the International Monetary Fund said spend the budget surplus money as long as the financing is transparent and closely monitored.”

Zimbabwean Finance and Economic Development Minister Mthuli Ncube refused to comment Saturday on his call for assistance.

Rusike added that the call for an unspecified amount of funds to import vaccines was confusing after Mnangagwa this week said his government had sourced free vaccines – some 200,000 donated by China. In the same speech, broadcast on national television, Mnangagwa said.

“A national vaccine deployment framework has also been finalized,” he added. “The initial objective is to inoculate at least 60% of the population. Government has set aside the requisite financial resources for the purchase of vaccines.”

Rusike said Zimbabwe should not expect much assistance from its usual donors such as the U.S., Britain and the European Union.

“It will be very difficult for the international donors, to come in and support Zimbabwe at this stage,” said Rusike. “Mainly because the very same donors are having the biggest burden of COVID-19. If you look at the U.S, the U.K, these are the hotspots for COVID-19. A lot of more people [than Zimbabwe] have been infected from COVID-19 and a lot of people continue to die from COVID-19 in those respective countries.”

For years now, the country’s health sector has largely depended on assistance of aid organizations such as USAID. The country’s health workers have on several occasions been on strike – including during this coronavirus outbreak – asking for PPE and better salaries.