Day: June 15, 2021

Summary Findings and Recommendations.

FINDINGS

• In the past two months April and May 2021, there were growing incidences of clear selective enforcement of the COVID-19 Statutory Instrument 77 of 2020 -The Public Health Order, for political expedience by the incumbent Zanu-PF.

• Zimbabweans including those formally employed, resorted to informal trading to make ends meet. Some sections of the private sector reduced the number of working days for employees and only remunerated for the days they came to work. This resulted in a 40% salary cut.

• There was a new wave of demolitions of vending stalls and harassment of vendors by a joint operation of local authorities and Zimbabwe police. The disruption worsened the toll on informal traders and compounded the already bleak future under the pandemic.

• There were increasing reports of people being turned away on grounds of non-availability of the COVID-19 vaccine. People who are not vaccinated are exposed to severities of the imminent third wave and variants from India and neighbouring South Africa.

• There were no recorded beneficiaries of the government COVID.19 relief fund in the past two months April and May 2021.

Source: Zimbabwe Peace Project

Giving 110%: Eswatini’s early rollout of COVID-19 vaccines

“I didn’t think that I could get COVID out here in my village,” says Linda Simelane at her home in Sibebe in rural Eswatini.

“I stay away from people, I stay alone, but it happened that I started getting flu symptoms.”

At the peak of Africa’s first wave of infections in mid-2020, Ms Simelane’s son took her to get tested for COVID-19, but as she waited for her results at home, her condition rapidly deteriorated.

“When I woke up I just couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t walk and I had a headache. I managed to call my son who came quickly and took me to the hospital.”

“After an X-ray the health worker told me that my lungs were finished. So they took me straight into intensive care and I was put on oxygen and a drip.”

Eswatini borders South-Africa, which accounts for nearly half of Africa’s cases of COVID-19.

Among Eswatini’s 1.2 million people, over 18 500 cases had been logged and over 670 people had died by late May this year.

Yet Linda Simelane is one of the lucky ones. She survived, went home after a few days to self-isolate, and has now had her first dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine.

Easing doubts

Eswatini received its first batch of 32 000 Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccines in late March. 12 000 came through the COVAX facility and 20,000 through a donation from the Indian Government.

“I first heard about the vaccine on the radio,” says Ms Simelane. “At first I wasn’t sure about taking it as they said the AstraZeneca one was rejected by South Africa.”

“But I’ve had it now, and I advise people to get it because this is not an easy sickness.”

Ms Simelane wasn’t the only one wary of the vaccine at first.

“Misinformation on safety circulated and I skipped the opportunity because I was not ready, but finally I did get the vaccine,” says health worker Vuyisile Lukhele.

“I didn’t have any side effects and I urge people to get vaccinated.”

To fight misinformation and ensure people come for vaccination, Eswatini set up a myths and misinformation committee under the leadership of the Ministry of Health.

“The biggest success has been the public demand and acceptance of the vaccine,” explains Ms Lizzie Nkosi, Eswatini’s Minister of Health.

“We started monitoring misinformation and engaging the public from very early in the COVID-19 response and built up trust through constant engagement via press conferences and radio spots, particularly around the AstraZeneca vaccine,” she says.

“By the time the vaccines arrived people wanted to be protected from severe illness and dying.”

Dr Lonkululeko Khumalo, an Epidemiological Officer with the World Health Organization (WHO) in Eswatini, explains that good coordination among government and non-governmental partners was key to building up confidence and demand for vaccines.

“We made a plan for a multimedia approach and worked to build up the capacity of health workers, as people trust them and they go out and teach people about the benefits,” he says.

“We saw a surge in demand right after our Deputy Prime Minister took the vaccine, but we couldn’t cope because we received just 32 000 doses for the first phase.”

Giving 110%

Analysis by WHO shows that Eswatini gave more vaccines per head than any other African nation during the first phase of their COVID-19 vaccine rollout.

“Eswatini gave nearly 110% of the doses they received as they made use of every single drop in every vial,” says Dr Phionah Atuhebwe, WHO’s New Vaccines Introduction Officer for Africa.

“Each vial contains a little more of the fluid needed for each dose to account for any spillage or accidents, but with precious few doses, Eswatini made the most of what they had.”

In the run- up to the vaccine rollout, Eswatini set up a training academy for vaccinators.

“The academy allowed us to develop a standard curriculum for all vaccinators and ensured that everyone closely followed the same procedure,” explains Health Minister Lizzie Nkosi.

As with many African countries, the supply squeeze is putting pressure on Eswatini, but in a show of confidence in the country’s rollout another 14 400 vaccines recently arrived through the COVAX Facility.

“We think we have done really well in phase one,” says WHO’s Dr Khumalo. “The COVID-19 vaccine rollout plan was comprehensive, covering all pillars of the vaccine rollout.”

“To succeed with the vaccine rollout political will is required right from the very top,” explains Health Minister Lizzie Nkosi. “It takes the whole of the government to make it work and I cannot say this enough; preparation, preparation and preparation.“

Back at home, Linda Simelane will soon get her second dose, with the new batch of vaccines that the government has received.

“I would advise people to please take the vaccine. I would say go and get it because this is not an easy sickness.”

Source: World Health Organization

Context

Over 31 million people are projected to be in acute need of food assistance this coming season (June to August 2021), a 28 per cent increase from the same period last year.[1] Of this, over 5.4 million are children suffering from acute malnutrition within the Sahel. This is a 20 per cent increase in a year, or since before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Child malnutrition is likely to increase as food insecurity rises in the upcoming lean season this year.[2]

The key drivers of acute food insecurity are a complex mix of chronic poverty, worsening violence and conflict fuelling displacement and hikes in food prices, and an overall weakened regional macro-economic foundation due to the COVID-19 restrictions from last year. Within this context, a second wave of COVID-19 has hit the region, further hindering recovering.

Despite this seemingly dire picture, there are positive projections for 2021. Especially with the development of vaccines, many countries are beginning to ease restrictions, which will benefit the region through the resumption of trade and tourism. Forecasts point towards an economic recovery, with the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for West Africa expected to grow by 2.8 per cent in 2021 and 3.9 per cent in 2022, as lockdowns cease and prices stabilise.[3] In addition, West Africa had ample rain last year and normal to above-average rainfall is projected for 2021. There are even projections for a surplus of food for the region this year.[4] Yet the availability of sufficient food doesn’t always equate to food security; access is equally critical, both economically and physical. This document analyzes these patterns of food supply and access and highlights the nature and drivers that underpin rising food insecurity trends in the region.

As economies begin to recover, the most vulnerable – those who have been pushed further into poverty and food insecurity due to the pandemic – will need sustained and concentrated support. World Food Programme’s Research Assessment and Monitoring (RAM)[5] Unit has developed new tools and analyses to inform operational and policy decision-making within this new context where needs are increasing, resources are limited, and conflict is making access more difficult.

In conflict-affected areas, where physical access is constrained, analysis of satellite imagery helps WFP and partners to get a more accurate picture of the impact of insecurity on agricultural production. These analyses help inform needs assessments done by governments and humanitarian partners in the region – see page 9 for more details.

Similarly, a hotspot analysis undertaken by WFP and UNICEF has identified priority areas for food security and nutrition interventions based on the Cadre Harmonise (CH)/Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis, as well as other information such as nutrition surveys and numbers of food insecure populations (i.e. populations in CH Phase 3 or higher), as well as the number of internally displaced populations (IDPs) and conflict data – see page 12 for more details.

Source: World Food Programme