Rwanda has made significant and commendable strides in containing the coronavirus pandemic one year after it was first reported in the country. For instance, three weeks after the first batch of the anti-Covid vaccines were received in the country, 97 of the received doses have already been administered. So far, majority of those that had been mapped out as being in high risk groups – medical workers, security personnel, those with advanced age and people with underlying conditions and therefore vulnerable to the virus, among others - have received their first jab. At least 50,000 people, as announced by the Minister of Health, will soon get their second and final injection, while the rest, like more groups yet to be inoculated, will wait for another consignment which is expected soon. As strides are being made in getting more people inoculated, a sense of false confidence has started creeping among those that have been vaccinated, including people who have not completed the two jabs. This confidence has led to some of these letting down their guard in as regards implementing the measures in place to fight Covid-19, with an excuse that they are vaccinated and therefore safe. This is very dangerous and can, if left unchecked, set us back considerably on the gains that have been registered in fighting the virus, for which the county has received global acclaim. Scientists maintain, and the Minister of Health reiterated as much over the weekend, that the virus can only be contained if herd immunity is achieved among the communities. This herd immunity will only be achieved if a sizable number of people have been immunized, and this is clearly still a long way to go. Rwanda has barely inoculated 5 per cent of the population, and majority of these have only received just one jab of the recommended two for the vaccines that are available on the market. Good enough, a clear roadmap is already in place, with the government planning to inoculate at least 30 per cent of the population at the end of this year, which will be doubled next year to 60 per cent. As announced by the minister, the guidelines for the fight against the virus will only be reviewed after at least 60 per cent of the population have been inoculated. Until then, the mask, social distancing are still very much with us, and for our own good.
