Beatrice, a beautician at a spa in Nairobi, first tried to get vaccinated against COVID-19 in June. But all the health facilities she visited turned her away because they had no vaccine doses. All had either not received any supplies or they had run out. Eventually, she received her first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine at a health facility some 50 kilometres outside the city.
When it was time to get her second shot, Beatrice was told she might have...
Rasna Warah
South Africans are furious over re-imposed travel bans after the Omicron variant was detected in South Africa on 24 November. The UK was the first country to announce a red list of countries that citizens were prohibited from travelling to. This list includes South Africa and Botswana – the two African countries with the first confirmed cases of Omicron infections – as well as Angola, Namibia, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. The US, EU countries, Canada, UAE, Australia, and...
Cases of sexual violence against women are increasing in Ethiopia, as the conflict between the rebel Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) and the government of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed continues. Seventy women in Nifas Mewcha in the Amhara region reported being raped by TPLF fighters during a nine-day period in August when the armed group took control of the town, according to an Amnesty International report. Many of the women said they experienced physical and mental health problems after the...
COVID-19 vaccine inequity is set to worsen unless urgent measures are taken to accelerate vaccine production and distribution globally. Most low- and middle-income countries failed to achieve the WHO target of vaccinating at least 10% of their populations by the end of September. Only 15 African countries met the WHO target, with huge variations among this group. For example, 72% of the population in the Seychelles has been vaccinated, compared to just 13% in Rwanda.
Rich countries, on the other hand,...
Until about two decades ago, on clear sunny days and from certain strategic locations, Nairobi residents could catch a glimpse of Africa’s two highest mountains – Mount Kenya in the north and Mount Kilimanjaro in the south, both located some 200 kilometres from the city. The view was spectacular: It captured two majestic mountains in two neighbouring countries, and both mountains were covered in snow, an unusual phenomenon for mountains located so near the Equator.
But such sights are rare...
In August, the International Monetary Fund announced the largest allocation of Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) in its history. IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said the allocation, worth about $650 billion, would be “a significant shot in the arm for the world” and, if used wisely, could help economies to quickly recover from COVID-19’s negative economic impacts.
“The SDR allocation will provide additional liquidity to the global economic system – supplementing countries’ foreign exchange reserves and reducing their reliance on more...
In July, Kenyans were dismayed to learn that a cash transfer programme intended to help low-income people deal with COVID-19’s economic impact did not actually benefit those recepients, due to corruption and other irregularities. A study by Human Rights Watch found that officials in charge of disbursing the funds frequently ignored eligibility criteria for beneficiaries, and in some cases, directed the funds to relatives or friends.
Moreover, not all those who were enrolled in the programme received the cash. Many...
COVID-19 has shown the fault lines in healthcare systems around the world, particularly in fragile states where access to public health services has been disrupted or is extremely limited. In Somalia – which has experienced decades of conflict and political instability since the collapse of the state in 1991 – the lack of a robust health system has impacted the country’s ability to deal with the pandemic.
Amnesty International found that only one hospital in the entire country – the...
While rich countries are buying and hoarding COVID-19 vaccines, African countries are facing an uphill battle to obtain vaccines. Many African leaders hoped to secure vaccines from COVAX, the vaccine distribution facility for low-income countries that aims to narrow the global vaccine inequity gap. But some of the countries that contributed vaccines to COVAX are now raiding the very facility that they pledged to support. Rich countries like the UK, Canada, Qatar, Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia have been buying...
The death of 22-year-old Benson Njiru Ndwiga and his 19-year-old brother Emmanuel in police custody in Kianjokoma has once again highlighted the excessive use of force and violence by Kenya’s police when enforcing COVID rules. Police say that the brothers, both college students, died after jumping out of a moving police vehicle after they were rounded up for flouting the nationwide curfew time of 10 pm, which the government extended on 30 July after a nation-wide spike in COVID-19...