Opening statement, COVID-19 Press Conference, 6 May 2021

Remarks by WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr Matshidiso Moeti

Good morning and good afternoon to everyone joining us for this press conference, bonjour tout le monde. So, we are going to be talking about how African countries are preparing for a resurgence of COVID-19, which we hope will not come, and to update on the vaccine rollout.

I’m pleased to welcome for this conversation, Mr Thabani Maphosa, who is the Managing Director of Country Programmes at Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, welcome Thabani, to talk with us about the work of the COVAX Facility.

In African countries, there have now been almost 4.6 million COVID-19 cases and 123,000 people have sadly died.

Like the rest of the world, we are observing with great concern the heart-breaking situation in India. Here on the African continent, there is the potential for a surge in cases. South Africa has just reported 2000 cases overnight, which is an increase of several hundreds over the day before and around 10 other countries are reporting an upward trend. With the start of winter in Southern Africa we may see further increases in the sub-region. In countries such as Botswana and Ethiopia, intensive care capacities are already being pushed to their limits.

Part of what’s driving these situations appear to be new variants of the virus. As WHO we are supporting countries to strengthen sequencing capacities to detect these mutations. So far 42 African countries have reported more than 14,000 sequences. Variants B.1.1.7 and B.1.351 have respectively been reported in 20 and 23 countries, and the variant of interest, B.1.617, which was first detected in India, has now been reported in Uganda and in Kenya.

With delays and shortages of vaccine supplies, African countries are slipping further behind the rest of the world in the COVID-19 vaccine roll out, now accounting for only 1% of the vaccines administered worldwide, down from 2% a few weeks ago.

While shipments of COVID-19 vaccines have temporarily ground to a halt, at least slowed down, African countries must also step up and do their part. Only around half of the 37 million doses shipped to the continent have been administered so far.

We need to get the available vaccines into people’s arms fast. This requires investments in delivery capacities to mobilize the people and the resources needed to rollout these campaigns in every province, including partnering with the private sector where it’s feasible.

I’d like to add my voice in praising the United States decision to support a temporary waiver on patent protections for COVID-19 vaccines and treatments, which could mark a game-changer for Africa, unlocking millions more doses and saving countless more lives. For local production to really take off, investments will be needed in technology transfer, capacity-building and quality assurance, backed by strong regulatory systems and private sector partnerships.

In the coming months, the supply shortages mean there is a risk that the timeliness of doses will be sub-optimal. To protect people from severe disease and death, we recommend that countries prioritize the first dose for as many high-risk people as possible in the shortest amount of time.

The current constraints can be addressed quickly if countries with surplus supplies share their doses with those in need. We welcome the pledges by several high-income countries to donate doses. We hope that the timelines for these donations can be brought forward and actioned as soon as possible to prevent severe illness and save lives.

With new variants circulating, low vaccination levels, population fatigue in adhering to preventive measures, and easing of restrictions, the conditions are present for a resurgence.

What’s happening in India must not happen here. If we prepare now, we will not pay the price later.

As WHO, we are supporting countries to heighten preparedness activities.

Of great concern is the management of severe and critical COVID-19 patients. Although capacities have improved over the past year, there are still shortages of oxygen supplies.

Whereas most high-income countries globally have at least two intensive care beds per 100 000 people, only nine countries in the African Region have this many.[1]

We urge partners and countries to work together to rapidly scale-up clinical and intensive care capacities. This will have benefits for COVID-19 and other life-threatening conditions.

I commend countries such as Eswatini for pre-positioning resources at the district level and expanding training of health workers, and South Africa for reviewing resurgence plans down to the district level. I urge all African countries to take similar steps now so that we are better prepared in the event of an epidemic surge.

Again, thank you for joining us and looking very much forward to our discussion.