Tanzania president urges public not to ignore COVID-19

Tanzania President, Samia Suluhu Hassan, urged the public not to ignore a third wave of COVID-19.

The president said in a speech that, “As you know the world is grappling with the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. We came from the first wave and Tanzania was affected.

“The second wave came and dropped and now there is the third wave. There are signs of the third wave in our country. We have COVID-19 patients who have been seen in this third wave.”

This came after her predecessor, the late John Magufuli, alarmed the world with his skeptical approach to the pandemic, the government has changed from downplaying the crisis to calling for social distancing and wearing of mask in the public.

The World Health Organisation earlier said, there was currently no COVID-19 vaccination programme in Tanzania.

The country had applied to join COVAX Vaccine-sharing facility and officials there are working with health partners to develop a deployment plan.

The government has also asked the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a 571 million-dollar loan to help it tackle the challenges caused by the coronavirus.

Magufuli before his death, dismissed the threat of COVID-19, suggested Tanzania was free of the virus and called vaccines a western conspiracy.

The country of 58 million people stopped reporting COVID-19 cases and deaths in May 2020.

Kamila/Vanguard