Zimbabwe has commenced the second phase of the COVID-19 vaccination programme that will target school teachers, tobacco merchants and workers in the hospitality sector, Information Minister Monica Mutsvangwa has announced.
In a post-cabinet briefing on Tuesday night, Mutsvangwa said a total of 36,786 people have been vaccinated since the first phase of the programme commenced about three weeks ago, which targeted frontline workers such as medical personnel, security forces, officials at ports of entry and the media.
She said, due to the low uptake of the first phase, the government has now decided to intensify the vaccination exercise by increasing with all provinces receiving coverage.
“In order to utilise the existing capacity as agreed at the last meeting, cabinet resolved that Stage Two of Phase One of the vaccination roll-out will include tobacco merchants and their workers, teachers and hospitality industry workers, and this should commence immediately,” Mutsvangwa said.
The announcement came on the same day that Zimbabwe received 400,000 more COVID-19 vaccine doses from China, the second shipment since the country rolled out its immunisation programme targeting frontline workers last month.
Part of the consignment was a purchase from Sinovac while the other half was a donation of the Sinopharm jabs from the Chinese government.
Coronavirus has so far infected more than 36,500 people in Zimbabwe and claimed the lives of over 1,500 others.
JN/APA