By SIMON MUNTEMBA
GOVERNMENT has urged the public to take the projection of a fourth Covid-19 wave seriously by getting vaccinated.
Ministry of Health Permanent Secretary for Technical Services Kennedy Malama said vaccination was a surest way of protecting oneself from severe Covid-19 and death.
Dr Malama said there was a possibility of having the fourth wave of Covid-19 at the end of this year into early 2022 in Zambia.
He said it was for this reason that the government was prioritising strengthening health systems across all pillars, including the vaccination programme.
“We urge the public to take the projection of a fourth wave seriously and start preparing at individual, family, institutional and community levels.
“Even as we urge the public to prepare for the fourth wave, we reiterate that vaccination is a surest way of protecting oneself from severe Covid-19 and death,” Dr Malama said in a statement yesterday.
He said adherence to the public health measures would continue being paramount in the evolution of the pandemic, not forgetting the global and regional situations.
Meanwhile, Dr Malama said the Covid-19 situation had sustainably improved in the country over the past two weeks with less than five percent national positivity rate.
He said the ministry would continue monitoring the Covid-19 situation countrywide but particularly at provincial and district levels to ensure that appropriate action was expeditiously taken.
Dr Malama said in the last 24 hours 1, 701 doses of Johnson and Johnson, 15 doses of Sinopharm as well as 28 dose one and 64 dose two AstraZeneca vaccines were administered.
He said so far, 598, 218 doses (61 percent) have been administered.
Dr Malama said 86 new Covid-19 cases recorded out of the 5, 158 tests conducted in the last 24 hours while two people died during the same period.
