Slow Vaccination Rate in Africa Could Have Major Consequences, Experts Warn

NAIROBI, KENYA - By any measure, the number of those being vaccinated against COVID-19 in Africa are running behind the rest of the world. Health experts warn that failure to inoculate the 1.3 billion people on the continent will have a huge impact on its health care systems and economies. 

More than a year into the COVID-19 pandemic, most African countries have vaccinated only a tiny fraction of their populations. Nigeria, the most populous nation in Africa, has fully vaccinated just 0.1% of its citizens. The Africa Center for Disease Control says three countries — Tanzania, Burundi, Eritrea — and the self-declared Sahrawi Republic have yet to receive any vaccines, while Burkina Faso has received 115,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine but has not yet administered a single jab.