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African countries acquire over 38 million Covid-19 vaccines

Friday May 14 2021
Covid vaccine Sudan

A man receives a dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid-19 coronavirus vaccine at the Jabra Hospital for Emergency and Injuries in Sudan's capital Khartoum on March 9, 2021. PHOTO | AFP

By XINHUA

Addis Ababa,

African countries have acquired 38.03 million Covid-19 vaccines so far, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) disclosed on Thursday.

The Africa CDC, the specialised healthcare agency of the 55-member African Union, said 22.4 million Covid-19 doses have been administered, out of the over 38.03 million acquired by member states.

This figure corresponds to a coverage rate of 1.48 per cent at the continental level, with 0.40 per cent of the population having received a full vaccine regimen, according to the Africa CDC.

According to the Africa CDC, African countries have used close to 58.87 per cent of the vaccine supply available.

It said five member states that are Morocco, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Egypt and Kenya have administered the most doses of Covid-19 vaccines to their respective populations.

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The north African country of Morocco comes first administering 10.13 million Covid-19 vaccines, with 11.9 per cent of the country's population fully vaccinated.

The West African country of Nigeria comes second administering 1.67 million Covid-19 vaccines, with 0.82 per cent of the population fully vaccinated.

Ethiopia is in third place administering 1.3 million Covid-19 vaccines, with 1.13 per cent of the population fully vaccinated.

As of Thursday noon, the number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in Africa had reached 4,660,304 while the death toll from the pandemic stood at 125,404.

At least 4,219,117 patients across the continent have recovered from the disease, according to the agency.

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