Kenya approves Chinese vaccine Sinopharm

Kenyan authorities have just approved the anti-covid vaccine from Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinopharm, as the East African country steps up its efforts to counter the third wave of the new coronavirus raging in the country.

“Kenya has approved Sinopharm. We are confident of the efficacy of this vaccine as it has been certified by the WHO,” said the director of Covid-19 vaccination at the Ministry of Health, Willis Akhwale.

The official said the national drug regulatory body, Pharmacy and Poisons Board (PPB), has approved the Chinese vaccine along with three other serums to boost the national immunization campaign aimed at vaccinating 10% of the population by the end of the year.

On Wednesday, the Kenyan government announced that it is set to extend pandemic restrictions, including a national curfew, to stem a worrying surge in Covid-19 cases.

The East African country is facing a surge in infections due to rampant mass gatherings and the increasing abandonment of barrier measures, Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta said in a statement.

In the past week, Covid-19 test positivity rates have exceeded 20% in more than a third of the country’s 47 counties.