Africa is struggling with the COVID-19 pandemic’s third wave, which is spreading quicker and is likely to surpass the peak of the second wave, which reached the continent in early 2021.

Since the third wave began on May 3, 2021, 19 cases have increased for five weeks in a row. Africa had registered roughly 474 000 new cases as of 20 June, day 48 of the new wave, a 21 percent rise over the first 48 days of the second wave.
By early July, given the current pace of infection, the current spike will have surpassed the preceding one.

In 12 African countries, the epidemic has resurfaced.The latest spike is being fueled by a number of factors, including a lack of compliance with public health measures, increasing social engagement and migration, and the spread of variations.

The Delta variation has been discovered in most samples sequenced in the past month in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda, both of which are suffering COVID-19 recurrence.

The variation, which was first discovered in India, has been reported in 14 African nations.

“The World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Director for Africa, Dr Matshidiso Moeti stated that the third wave is picking up speed, spreading faster, hitting harder. With rapidly rising case numbers and increasing reports of serious illness, the latest surge threatens to be Africa’s worst yet,” . “Africa can still blunt the impact of these fast-rising infections, but the window of opportunity is closing. Everyone everywhere can do their bit by taking precautions to prevent transmission.”

While adding that, WHO is deploying more experts to some of the worst-affected countries, including Uganda and Zambia as well as supporting South Africa-based regional laboratories to monitor variants of concern. WHO is also boosting innovative technological support to other laboratories in the region without sequencing capacities to better monitor the evolution of the virus. In the next six months, WHO is aiming for an eight- to ten-fold increase in the samples sequenced each month in Southern African countries.

Moeti added; “The COVID-19 upsurge comes as the vaccine supply crunch persists. Eighteen African countries have used over 80% of their COVAX vaccine supplies, with eight having exhausted their stocks. Twenty-nine countries have administered over 50% of their supplies. Despite the progress, just over 1% of Africa’s population has been fully vaccinated. Globally, around 2.7 billion doses administered, of which just under 1.5% have been administered in the continent.

“As many high-income countries vaccinate a significant proportion of their populations, proof of vaccination is leading to fewer movement restrictions. Globally,16 countries are waiving quarantine for those with a vaccination certificate. Measures to prevent COVID-19 transmission are crucial, but with many African countries having limited access to vaccines, it is important that vaccines be only one of the conditions countries use to open borders and increase freedom of movement.

“With high vaccination rates it’s shaping up into a summer of freedom, family and fun for millions of people in richer countries. This is understandable and we all long for the same joys”. “Vaccine shortages are already prolonging the pain of COVID-19 in Africa. Let’s not add injury to injustice. Africans must not face more restrictions because they are unable to access vaccines that are only available elsewhere. I urge all regional and national regulatory agencies to recognize all the vaccines Emergency Use listed by WHO.”

In the European Union, a COVID-19 passport system for vaccination, testing and recovery will take effect from 1 July. However, only four of the eight vaccines listed by WHO for emergency use are recognized by the European Medicines Agency for the passport system.

WHO and the European Medicines Agency use the same standards in assessing vaccines. Manufacturers may choose not to apply to the European Medicines Agency if they do not intend to market their products in countries in the European Union or European Economic Area. But the safety and efficacy of all WHO emergency use listed vaccines has been proven globally in preventing severe COVID-19 illness and death.

In Africa, a WHO survey of 45 countries show that their borders are open for air travel and only Mauritius will require proof of vaccination for international travellers from 15 July 2021. Most countries do not give quarantine exemptions for travellers who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and require a negative COVID-19 test.

Moeti spoke during a virtual press conference today facilitated by APO Group. She was joined by Mr Kamil Alawadi, Regional Vice President for Africa and Middle East, International Air Transport Association (IATA). Also on hand to answer questions were Dr Richard Mihigo, Coordinator, Immunization and Vaccines Development Programme, WHO Regional Office for Africa, Dr Thierno Balde, Team Leader, Operational Partnerships, WHO Regional Office for Africa, and Dr Nicksy Gumede-Moeletsi, Regional Virologist, WHO Regional Office for Africa.

Dr. Faisal Shuaib, Executive Director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), clarified that the full vaccination dose does not exempt people who have received their second doses of the Oxford/AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine from following infection prevention and control measures.

To prevent the virus from spreading further, it is critical for everyone, including those who have taken their second dose, to continue to wear face masks and follow other non-pharmaceutical measures.

He stated this at a press conference to inform Nigerians about the status of COVID-19 vaccination, while also emphasizing that the Federal Government, led by His Excellency President Muhammadu Buhari, is deeply concerned about the safety and health of its citizens and is committed to stopping COVID-19 transmission through vaccination and non-pharmaceutical measures.
As a result, we must all play a role in keeping ourselves and our communities secure. Please keep yourself safe!

He further explained that, “The Federal Government has remained committed to ensuring that every eligible person in Nigeria is vaccinated against COVID-19. As of today, June 24th 2021, our data shows that 2,099,568 people have been vaccinated with their first doses while 1,005,234 have received their second doses of the Oxford/AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine.

“You would recall that the government reopened administration of first dose to address increase in vaccine demand by people who were yet to be vaccinated at all. This resulted in the increase in number of clients vaccinated with the first doses.

“We understand the constraints of time arising from our various economic and social engagements and because of that, we decided to extend the administration of second dose of the vaccine until 5th of July 2021. You would recall that the initial closing date for second dose administration was 25th of June, 2021. Even though we have extended the timeline for the second dose administration until 5th of July 2021, however those who have received their first dose no later than May 13th are advised to visit the nearest vaccination site to receive their second dose as soon as possible, for full protection against COVID-19.”

Furthermore, NPHCDA boss hinted that, “We continue to receive requests from Nigerians who have taken the first dose of the vaccine outside the Country but want to take the second dose back home. They should walk into the nearest designated health facility to receive the jab. Health workers are hereby requested not to turn them back.

“Our decision to reopen administration of first dose is indeed a great opportunity for those who are yet to be vaccinated. Please let us take advantage of this opportunity to get ourselves, our families and communities protected by going to get your jabs and kindly encourage others who are 18 years and above to do so as well. This set of people should be rest assured that by the time they are due for their second doses, we would have received another consignment of the vaccines.

” We have experienced great frustration regarding the global vaccine supply. Not only have there been huge challenges with respect to vaccine manufacturers producing enough vaccines for the world, but there also has been great inequity in terms of distribution. Most countries of the world have received few, and in some cases no, vaccines. This is a problem that needs to be solved urgently and we are communicating this very clearly to our international partners on behalf of Nigerians. Recently, we are encouraged by the swell of contributions and pledges from major nations into COVAX. Rich nations of the world are showing greatly increased recognition that there must be more supply produced and it must be distributed much more fairly, and they are becoming active in solving this. Just a few days ago, the U.S. White House reconfirmed it will send an initial 80 million doses internationally by the end of this month, with additional shipments continuing to ramp up thereafter. These supplies and other large donations of vaccines to COVAX that are now planned will enable COVAX to supply new consignments to Nigeria and other nations who need vaccines now”, he stressed.

He also noted that, the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) is working closely with the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) on Adverse Event Following Immunization (AEFI) response. An App known as MED-SAFETY App was launched; it is available for free on Play store for Android devices and Apple Store for IOS devices. With this App, any individual can report vaccine side effect for him or herself, or on behalf of another person, and will receive timely response. There are also other pharmacovigilance measures in place to monitor and respond to AEFI cases throughout the country. So far after more than three million vaccinations, 13,267 people have experienced mild to moderate side effects, while 4,708 have experienced moderate to severe side effects.

 
He stated that Nigeria has not recorded any case of death directly linked to COVID-19 vaccination. Cases of mild, moderate and severe reactions that have been recorded are expected from normal vaccination, and people who experienced any of these have since recovered and are doing well. Therefore, we should not allow the fear of side effects to discourage us from taking the vaccine, as the long term benefits of getting vaccinated far outweighs the risk of brief side effects.

 
He said, “In continuation of our sensitization efforts, I would like to inform you that the Presidential Steering Committee on COVID-19 (PSC) under the able leadership of Barrister Boss Mustapha, the Secretary General of the Federation, will continue to engage with stakeholders and our communities through the Zonal Town Hall Meetings. Accordingly, the next meeting will be the North-West Zonal meeting to hold in Kano state. And from Kano, we will be continuing to other geopolitical zones of the country where we are yet to have the meetings. I am counting on your resilience to continue to be part of this historic effort.

“It is worthy to mention that our commitment to discuss our vaccination efforts directly with the communities is hinged on the principles of transparency and inclusiveness in the interventions to protect the lives of Nigerians against COVID-19. Our experiences in North-Central and North-East have been highly encouraging and assuring of our collective will to overcome COVID-19 and put it behind us, the way we did to the Wild Polio Viruses (WPV). We therefore remain optimistic that through Town Hall Meetings and other awareness creation events, we will be able to safeguard our communities against COVID-19.”

The World Health Organization (WHO) and its COVAX partners are working with Biovac, Afrigen Biologics and Vaccines, a network of universities, and the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to develop the first COVID mRNA vaccine technology transfer hub in South Africa.

The plan comes after the World Health Organization (WHO) launched a global call for Expressions of Interest (EOI) on April 16, 2021, for the construction of COVID mRNA vaccine technology transfer centers in order to scale up COVID vaccine manufacturing and availability.

The partners will negotiate details with the South African government, as well as public and private partners inside the country .

“The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the full scope of the vaccine gap between developed and poor economies, and how that gap can gravely jeopardize global health security,” stated South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.

This historic endeavor marks a significant step forward in the international drive to increase vaccine development and manufacturing capability, putting Africa on the road to self-determination.

South Africa welcomes the opportunity to host a vaccine technology transfer hub and to contribute to this endeavor by using the continent’s existing capacity and expertise.”

Also, the WHO Director General, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, stated that, “This is great news, particularly for Africa, which has the least access to vaccines,” said “COVID-19 has highlighted the importance of local production to address health emergencies, strengthen regional health security and expand sustainable access to health products.”

The announcement follows the recent visit to South Africa by the President of France, Mr Emmanuel Macron, who said his country was committed to supporting efforts in Africa to scale up local manufacturing capacity of COVID-19 vaccines and other medical solutions.

“Today is a great day for Africa. It is also a great day for all those who work towards a more equitable access to health products. I am proud for Biovac and our South African partners to have been selected by WHO, as France has been supporting them for years,” said President Macron. “This initiative is the first of a long list to come, that we will keep supporting, with our partners, united in the belief that acting for global public goods is the fight of the century and that it cannot wait.”

Technology transfer hubs are training facilities where the technology is established at industrial scale and clinical development performed. Interested manufacturers from low- and middle-income countries can receive training and any necessary licenses to the technology. WHO and partners will bring in the production know-how, quality control and necessary licenses to a single entity to facilitate a broad and rapid technology transfer to multiple recipients.

The technology transfer hub will benefit from the Medicines Patent Pool’s (MPP’s) vast experience of intellectual property (IP) management and issuing of IP licenses. MPP is also assisting WHO to negotiate with technical partners and supporting in the governance of the hubs.

Biovac is a bio-pharmaceutical company that is the result of a partnership formed with the South African government in 2003 to establish local vaccine manufacturing capability for the provision of vaccines for national health management and security.

Afrigen Biologics and Vaccines is a biotechnology company focuses on product development, bulk adjuvant manufacturing and supply and distribution of key biologicals to address unmet healthcare needs.

The organizations complement one another, and can each take on different roles within the proposed collaboration: Biovac will act as developer, Afrigen as manufacturer and a consortium of universities as  academic supporters providing mRNA know-how, and Africa CDC for technical and regional support.

The South African consortium benefits from having existing operating facilities that have spare capacity and because it has experience in technology transfers. It is also a global hub that can start training technology recipients immediately.

Recall that , WHO’s April call for expressions of interest has so far generated 28 offers to either provide technology for mRNA vaccines or to host a technology hub or both. There have been 25 expressions of interest from low- and middle-income country respondents who could receive the technology to produce mRNA vaccines.

Over the coming weeks, WHO will continue the rolling evaluation of other proposals and identify additional hubs, as needed, to contribute to health security and equity in all regions.

Through the COVAX partnership, WHO will continue its assessment of potential mRNA technology donors and will launch subsequent calls for other technologies, such as viral vectors and proteins, in coming months.

WHO is also hosting the Local production forum this week, to identify strategies to expand pharmaceutical manufacturing capacity in low- and middle-income countries for COVID-19 and other priority diseases.