Zimbabwe Lockdown: Day 582 – WCOZ Situation Report

582 days of the COVID-19 Lockdown, and as of 31st of October 2021, the Ministry of Health and Child Care reported that, the cumulative number of COVID-19 cases had increased to 132 977 after 23 new cases all local cases, were recorded. The highest case tally was recorded in Masvingo with 11 cases. We note that the Hospitalisation rate as at 15:00hrs on 30 October 2021 remained at 29 hospitalised cases: 2 New Admissions, 9 Asymptomatic cases, 19 mild-to-moderate cases, 1 severe cases and 0 cases in Intensive Care Units. A total of 3 783 people received their 1st doses of vaccine. The cumulative number of the 1st dose vaccinated now stands at 3 310 575. A total of 4 417 recipients received their second dose bringing the cumulative number of 2nd dose recipients to 2 595 159. Active cases went down to 599. The total number of recoveries went up to 127 700 increasing by 59 recoveries. The recovery rate remains at 96%. The death toll went up to 4 678, as there was 1 new death recorded.

Critical Emerging Issue

Minors to get vaccinated

We amplify the watershed announcement by the Government indicating that children under the age of 18 will be vaccinated. The expansion directly targets those aged over 16 years and under 18 years. We therefore remain vigilant on the processes regarding potential vaccination of younger children. We note that the policy shift is guided by recommendation of specialist paediatricians. We note further that the target date for herd immunity in Zimbabwe remains the end of December 2021. We further note with commendation, expansion of vaccination centres to secondary schools, colleges and universities in all provinces.

• We call for such vaccination centres to be open to administer vaccines to the broader communities surrounding educational centres.
• We call for the public release of a full expert report regarding potential side effects of the vaccine to minors.

Outstanding issues

Equity in Global Crisis Responses

Fully cognisant of the first, in-person-meeting of the G20 meeting currently underway in Italy and the back-to-back conversations to be followed up in Glasgow, we highlight the principles of equity and justice in the response to global matters. We especially reiterate the need for the demonstration of the step by step support to developing countries through coordinated, supported, and resourced multilateral response efforts including and not limited to; the COVID-19 pandemic response and the Conference of Parties 26 on climate change. We highlight the matters of injustice in the global arena undermine the mutual aspirations of countries and the commitments made to the Sustainable Development Goals which are now already off-track around the world. We continue to call upon the developed nations of the globe, to place equity and justice at the centre of their mechanisms when addressing global matters that will not be resolved if everyone is not equitably supported. We continue to critique vaccine inequity which presently has manifested itself in the population of the G20 countries having 73% of their populations vaccinated against a despairing figure of 3% of the populations of least developed countries. We amplify the calls made the WHO which notes with concern that of 7 billion vaccines administered, 80% of those vaccines have been in the G20 Countries and only 0.4% in Africa

• We call for the G20 to support direct increased support for developing countries to combat climate change and build back in a clean, climate smart integrated and sustainable post-COVID-19 economic recovery process.
• We call for increased vaccine support to Sub-Saharan Africa from developing countries which have already vaccinated 40% of their populations.
• We call to multilateral platforms to be just and as such, we amplify reminders that multilateral efforts that do not reform to protect the principle of equity and equality constrain themselves and undermine progress in critical global processes, to the undue distress of all nations.

Source: Women’s Coalition of Zimbabwe