Kenya has offered free COVID-19 vaccines to all diplomats based there, including thousands of United Nations personnel, even though they have not ended up defending their health workers themselves, other frontline workers or the elderly, drawing criticism from local doctors.
The offer was made in a March 18 letter sent by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to diplomatic missions and seen by Reuters news agency.
Macharia Kamau, chief secretary of the foreign ministry, said the images offered were provided through the COVAX vaccine access scheme led by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Kenya, where nearly 2,000 people have died from COVID-19, is fighting the third wave and the health ministry reported 28 deaths on Friday, the highest daily number since the outbreak began.
“We need to protect everyone who lives in Kenya. It just made sense not to reach out to Kenyans but also to the international community here, ”said Kamau.
Kamau said Kenyans in priority areas were still getting the vaccine but the decision was in line with Kenya’s responsibilities as home to a large diplomatic community.
It was estimated that 25,000 to 30,000 diplomats, DA staff and family members live in Nairobi. “We are the only United Nations capital in the Southern Hemisphere. Once you have this kind of honor, it comes with a special responsibility. ”
Nairobi will host the DA’s headquarters in Africa. The DA’s Office at Nairobi (UNON) is one of four major sites around the world, where many UN organizations such as the UNICEF children’s group and others have large exhibitions.
Just more than 28,000 health workers, teachers and security guards had received their first photos, the Ministry of Health said in a March 19 post on Twitter.
He said in early March that he would set aside 400,000 vaccines for health and other critical workers.
A woman is receiving the AstraZeneca / Oxford vaccine under the COVAX scheme against coronavirus infection (COVID-19) at Kenyatta National Hospital in Nairobi [File: Monicah Mwangi/Reuters]
“I think the government should focus on getting the priority vaccine and accepting vaccines with them before they open up to diplomacy,” said Elizabeth Gitau, a Kenyan physician and chief executive of the Kenya Medical Association.
The ministry of health gave questions to the foreign ministry. Two Nairobi-based diplomats who refused recognition to Reuters confirmed that their embassies had accepted the offer.
“Priority must be given to Kenyans,” said Chibanzi Mwachonda, head of the Kenya Union of Physicians, Pharmacists and Dentists.
The government note said that vaccination would begin on March 23 and that only certified diplomats and their families were eligible.
So far Kenya has received only two batches of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines – just over a million through COVAX and a 100,000 bullet donation from the Indian government.
COVAX was set up to ensure that vaccines were available to high-risk and vulnerable people, as well as front-line health workers, in countries that were unable to buy views on the international market separately competitive.
The WHO referred Reuters to UNON and the Kenyan government when asked to comment.
Newton Kanhema, a spokesman for UNON, confirmed that he had accepted the offer and would give up the government about it. He said UNON had about 20,000 employees and dependents, but many of them were children and therefore not deserving.
“Why is the Kenyan government prioritizing expats – who have money and receive the vaccines through their own channels – over their own population, especially the poor? ”Said one of the diplomats who received the embassy for the job offer.