Rwanda Security Force (RSF) in Cabo-Delgado, Mozambique, on Monday, December 6 received the booster (3rd) dose of the Covid-19 vaccine.

According to a statement from the Ministry of Defence, the exercise started in Afungi and Palma areas in Cabo Delgado Province and is to continue to all areas of RSF deployments, including Mocimboa Da Praia, Mbau and Limala.

At the request of the government of Mozambique, in July this year, Rwanda deployed a 1000-person contingent in Cabo Delgado, a province affected by terrorism and insecurity caused by armed extremists linked to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).

Meanwhile, since late last month, Rwanda started a gradual roll out of the booster jab to elderly citizens aged 50 and above in the country.

According to the Ministry of Health, the roll out will also be extended to people aged between 30 and 49 living with Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) or immunocompromising conditions as well as frontline workers. 

The move is one of the efforts taken by government to further curb the spread of the virus.

In addition, the country extended its inoculation campaign in schools targeting children aged 12-17 years.

The country is aiming at vaccinating at least nine million people against Covid-19 by October 2022, according to a recent statement by Prime Minister Edouard Ngirente.

As of December, more than 6.2 million people in Rwanda had received the first dose of the Covi-19 vaccine, while more than 3.7 million had received two jabs.

So far, Rwanda has garnered up to 12.9 million doses of the Covid-19 vaccine either through the COVAX facility (a global initiative that aims at accelerating fair and equitable access to Covid-19 vaccines), through the donations while others were acquired from the government’s budget.