Tanzania receives 3 mln COVID-19 vaccine doses donated by China

DAR ES SALAAM, July 15 (Xinhua) -- The government of Tanzania on Thursday received a donation of 3 million COVID-19 Sinopharm vaccine doses donated by China.

Chu Kun, Economic and Commercial Counselor in the Chinese Embassy in Tanzania, handed over the vaccines to the director of Preventive Services in the Ministry of Health, Beatrice Mutayoba, at the Julius Nyerere International Airport in the commercial capital Dar es Salaam.

Speaking shortly after the handing over ceremony, Mutayoba thanked China for yet another donation of COVID-19 vaccine doses, saying part of the latest donation are for women, children and teenagers in Tanzania as proposed by the Chinese First Lady, Prof. Peng Liyuan.

She said the 3 million vaccine doses will be used to vaccinate 1.5 million people in the east African nation.

She added that 10,115,804 people have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, which is equal to 16.51 percent of all Tanzanians.

She urged people to continue taking preventive measures against COVID-19, including taking the jabs, saying the pandemic was still prevalent in the country.

For example, she said statistics showed that between Sept. 1, 2021, and July 7, 2022, there were 3,507 recorded cases of COVID-19 across the country and 96 deaths.

Mutayoba said 3,337 patients diagnosed with COVID-19 out of the 3,507 patients were not vaccinated which was an equivalent of 95 percent, adding that 93 of the 96 deaths were not vaccinated, which was about 96.7 percent.

"This shows how vaccination against the viral disease is saving lives of people," said Mutayoba. She reassured people that vaccines against COVID-19 are safe and they have been approved by the World Health Organization (WHO).

Grace Mwangwa, director of Women Development in the Ministry of Community Development, Gender, Women and Special Groups, thanked China for donation of the vaccines, saying they were helping in saving the lives of many women in the country.

For his part, Chu said under the leadership of President Samia Suluhu Hassan, Tanzania has achieved remarkable progress in the prevention and control of COVID-19 and the economic recovery.

Up to now, China has provided 2.2 billion doses of vaccines to more than 120 countries and international organizations, said Chu.