The Sunday News
Sithatshisiwe Vuma, Sunday News Reporter
THERE have been no reported cases of adverse reaction to the Covid-19 vaccines being administered in Bulawayo since mass inoculation against the disease started nearly five months ago, officials have said.
More than 70 000 people have received their first dose of the vaccine while 55 000 people got their second dose in the city as of last week.
According to Medicines Control Authority of Zimbabwe (MCAZ) — the statutory body responsible for monitoring the effects of medical drugs licensed for use locally — Bulawayo has not recorded a single case of severe or potentially life-threatening side effects.
Health experts define an adverse effect as serious when it results in hospitalisation, extended stay in hospital, a significant reduction in functional capacity, or a life-threatening event like severe allergic reactions or death.
Acting Provincial Medical Officer for Bulawayo Dr Welcome Mlilo confirmed they have not received reports on hostile side effects for the Covid-19 vaccines.
“We have not received any patient who has been affected by the vaccine so far and many people have received the two doses, we are happy Bulawayo citizens have positively accepted the vaccine,” Dr Mlilo said.
People interviewed by Sunday News in Bulawayo who have received the jab said they did not feel any side effects of the jab.
“At first when the vaccine was introduced, I was afraid to be jabbed because of viral social media reports that the vaccine will alter my Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), which is a lie. People always have negative minds out there,” Bulawayo resident, a Ms Mpofu said.
Another resident Mrs Lwandile Nkomo said she has not experienced any side effect nor heard of anyone who had had complications after taking the vaccine. A top German statistics website, Statista, ranks Zimbabwe fourth in Africa in terms of the percentage of the population that has been inoculated. Data from the website shows that five in 100 people had been vaccinated in the country as at 7 June, 2021. Zimbabwe is ranked third in Southern Africa after the Seychelles and Mauritius, countries with smaller populations. South Africa is ranked at number 28 on the continent and 10th in the region.
Government has decentralised vaccination centres to the suburbs in order to accelerate the pace of the vaccination campaign and reach the goal of herd immunity by year-end. A recent study on health workers in Indonesia showed that Sinovac — one of the vaccines being used in Zimbabwe — has an efficacy rate of over 95 percent. Dr Mlilo urged Bulawayo citizens to go in numbers to their local clinics to get vaccinated, and always follow Covid-19 regulations in order to fight against third wave.
“We urge Bulawayo citizens to get vaccinated, also people have relaxed on wearing of masks and sanitizing. The third wave is real and it’s there as you all know that Kwekwe is on lockdown. We recommend the public to follow the regulations of covid-19,” he said.
