Rwanda scripts successful vaccination campaign

By James Tasamba

KIGALI, Rwanda (AA) – Rwanda, a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley in Africa is among the fewer counties that have succeeded in vaccinating over 60% of its population, even as the vaccine hesitancy remains rampant in the continent.

More than 7.9 million Rwandans, equivalent to 61% of the country’s population, are fully vaccinated against Covid-19 as of March 10, according to the data released by the Health Ministry.

Rwanda earned praise from the World Health Organization (WHO) after meeting its target of vaccinating at least 40% of the population by the end of 2021.

Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Brian Chirombo, WHO representative to Rwanda said not only did the East African country achieve the target but it is well on course to meet a further global vaccination target of 70% inoculation by July 1, 2022.

One of the reasons he cited for Rwanda’s achievement of this feat is the country’s use of an inclusive approach.

He said Rwanda involved the whole government in the vaccination program, instead of leaving it to the Health Ministry alone.

“The country also used vaccine delivery strategy that worked very well, bringing services close to the people. The government made sure the vaccination was decentralized right down to the lowest level, closest to where people are,” said Chirombo.

Rwanda is known for successful vaccination campaigns in Africa. Earlier as well the successful campaigns helped it to control or eliminate child killer diseases such as measles, rubella, polio among other diseases, according to health officials.

“The country has a very strong routine vaccination system for vaccinating children. So, it was possible to take advantage of the routine system and build on it,” he said.

- Nationwide campaign

Rwanda launched a nationwide vaccination campaign on March 5, 2021, starting with people from risk groups, including health personnel, frontline workers, and those older than 65 years or with underlying health conditions, before later expanding eligibility.

Many others believe that authorities achieved the feat by using a mix of coercion and persuasion.

Celestin Uwizeyimana, 25, a casual laborer told Anadolu Agency that he had resisted getting vaccinated, but when the government announced restrictions on the unvaccinated people, he lined up at a hospital to take jabs.

Last year in December, Rwanda imposed restrictions on unvaccinated people, excluding them from indoor restaurants, worship places, public transport, and bars to minimize the spread of coronavirus and encourage vaccine skeptics to get their jabs.

“I resolved that even if it meant standing in line the whole day, I could not leave until I got a jab,” said Uwizeyimana.

Rwanda’s vaccine portfolio includes Sinopharm, Pfizer, AstraZeneca, and Johnson&Johnson.

Health Minister Daniel Ngamije said the East African country’s COVID vaccine program has not been affected by the vaccine hesitancy due to a combination of factors, including leadership, partnership, coordination, and community engagement.

“Several factors combined to reach the current status [61% coverage] yet some countries that received vaccines saw them expire in their stocks,” he said.

According to the WHO official, Rwanda’s innovative strategies have been critical in scaling up vaccination, such as using drones and embracing technology to be able to track what is happening, knowing where the vaccines are, and ensuring that they are being utilized quickly.

- Effective communication strategy

Chirombo said the communication strategies adopted by Rwanda, helped to engage communities to understand why they need to get vaccinated.

“Working with partners such WHO, UNICEF, the government put in place an effective system of communication which has been very good in mobilizing communities, to make sure people are fully aware of vaccination and its benefits,” he said.

Rwanda received the Covid-19 vaccine either through the COVAX facility, a multilateral initiative aimed at guaranteeing global access to vaccines, direct purchase on the government’s budget, or through donations.

The country experienced the worst coronavirus outbreak in July and August 2021, where nearly 2,000 new cases were recorded in a single day. Last year in December also the omicron variant took over the country. But the numbers have since then dropped significantly.

A country of roughly 12 million people, Rwanda imposed tough anti-virus curbs that restricted its cases to just over 129, 637 and 1,459 deaths as of March 20, far lower than in many other African countries.