Ministry of Health says Southern Region districts are lagging behind in Covid-19 vaccinations with Thyolo anchoring the table with a vaccination rate of 3.3 percent.

The ministry’s statistics presented on Sunday in Blantyre during a meeting on Covid-19 and other emerging health issues organised by Malawi Red Cross Society show that despite being heavily populated, few people received the jabs.

The statistics further show that the Northern Region is leading, followed by the Central Region.

Kapombosola-Banda: It is doable

In terms of districts, Ntchisi is leading the pack with 37.2 percent vaccination rate followed by Dowa at 18.3 percent and Nsanje at 18 percent while Thyolo.

Ministry of Health deputy director of preventive health services responsible for community health Doreen Ali said the ministry set a target of 30 percent by June 2022 and 70 percent by June 2023, but have only achieved 10.2 percent.

“Since the pandemic was declared in Malawi, we have faced misconceptions and myths regarding Covid-19 itself and the vaccine,” she said.

Ali said the ministry, with support from partners such as Malawi Red Cross Society, has organised awareness meetings with traditional and faith leaders, the civil society and the media to counter the misinformation.

Malawi Red Cross Society head of health and social services Dan Kapombosola-Banda said with proper strategies, it is possible to reverse the trend.

“In Nsanje, we had poor results, but through engagement with stakeholders and other projects that we have implemented in partnership with the Ministry of Health, it has become the only district in the Southern Region that is performing well,” he said.

Malawi has cumulatively registered 86 225 Covid-19 cases.

The post Southern Region lags in Covid vaccination appeared first on The Nation Online.