The Ministry of Health and Wellness says the COVAX Facility will be rolled out as soon as the COVID-19 vaccines are ready for market and made available while a distribution system is put in place for the purpose.
Ministry Permanent Secretary, Kabelo Ebineng said Botswana, working with over 150 other countries, has participated in the COVAX Facility and complied with all the provisions of the agreements and commitments pledged by participating countries. He said for now, the details around what is being paid for and the cost are not public information.
“The target population will be addressed from a public health perspective and without specific sub-groupings. The money, as with all public-funded projects and services, is from government sources,” Ebineng said.
“Like the rest of the world, we are only learning of those vaccine candidates that can go to the human market.”
When the country is ready, the Botswana Medicines Regulatory Authority (BOMRA) being the relevant authority, will advise on the use of the vaccines and other regulatory considerations. He also said based on comparisons with other countries in the region and globally, the mortality, the extent to which the general public is aware of the need to wear masks, to practise social distancing and regularly wash hands, they believe Botswana has done well in responding to the pandemic. That said, he said there are other emerging hurdles to the maintenance of the successes made thus far and how to improve on them.
“One cannot say it has been easy or that enough is being done. This is why the general public has to be constantly reminded to remain vigilant, to self-protect at a personal and community level.”
Ebineng explained that the Integrated Community Health Strategy, which the Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr Edwin Dikoloti launched on November 12, 2020, is one means of promoting shared responsibility to mitigate against the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. He further said they continue to carry out complementary work across ministries, particularly the Ministries of Presidential Affairs, Governance and Public Administration and Local Government and Rural Development, which have been working with the Ministry of Health and Wellbeing on managing the pandemic within communities.
“This community strategy draws participants from community structures, including Members of Parliament, Councillors, Faith-Based Organisations, Dikgosi, Village Development Committees, Bi-lateral Partners and International Organisations like UN Bodies (WHO, UNAIDS, UNFPA, USAID etc) who all have to be instrumental in pushing the pandemic back,” he said.
Source: http://www.mmegi.bw/index.php?aid=88023&dir=2020/december/04
