Few days after its neighbors, Ghana, Ivory coast and Nigeria, Togo also officially received its very first batch of coronavirus vaccines on Sunday evening, as part of the Covax initiative.
A total of 156,000 doses of the Astrazeneca vaccine, 157,500 syringes and 1,575 safety boxes were landed at Lomé airport, in the presence of government officials as well as WHO representatives, Unicef and other partners.
In accordance with the deployment plan drawn up by the country and approved by the Initiative, this first batch will be administered to all health personnel and to people aged 50 and over, residing in Grand Lomé, from March 10.
The list of sites selected for vaccination will be communicated later by the government.
“Togo is making history by being one of the very first countries to receive the first wave of vaccines from the Covax initiative,” said UNICEF, which broadcast the event live on its digital channels.
“Great news for Togo. Our vaccination campaign will start very soon! ” said the Prime Minister Victoire Dogbé.
A year after the appearance of the coronavirus on its soil, Togo has 7,570 confirmed cases, 6,306 recovered and 92 deaths (March 07, 2021).