Govt gives directive on vaccinating children

Children under the age of 18 years will not be vaccinated against Covid-19, the government has directed. 

In a statement to newsrooms on Thursday, September 16, Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe said Kenya which will receive its first batch of the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine today will not administer it to children as it’s done in other countries. 

However, CS Kagwe gave an exception to minors living with disabilities and battling chronicle diseases.

On Friday, Kenya will receive the first consignment of 2 million Pfizer vaccine doses from the US government to boost the ongoing immunization exercise. 

Kagwe urged Kenyans not to be selective on the vaccines stating that 90 percent of those infected with Covid-19 are yet to be vaccinated while those who are vaccinated get mild symptoms. 

Kenya is also expecting 2 million doses of China’s Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine with the first donation of 200,000 is due this month.

Kenya has already approved the use of Sinopharm in addition to Astrazeneca, Johnson & Johnson, and Moderna which are already in use.