VICTORIA, Seychelles (AP) – The Indian Ocean nation of Seychelles had one of the first COVID-19 vaccine launches in the world, and this month aims to reopen the ground by achieving so-called “herd immunity”.
In an interview with The Associated Press, President Wavel Ramkalawan said the goal should be reached by mid-March, “when we have vaccinated 70,000 people. That’s 70%, because our population is 100,000. ”
The country is heavily dependent on tourism, and when COVID-19 vaccinations in Seychelles began in January, some workers in the tourism industry were among the first to receive them, along with health workers and the president himself.
By the end of February, about 44% of those vaccinated had received a second shot.
The country has benefited from so-called vaccine diplomacy. His vaccination effort began in January with 50,000 doses of China-made Sinopharm vaccine, donated by the United Arab Emirates, a close trading partner, according to the Seychelles news agency. Emirati carrier Etihad Airways holds a substantial stake in Air Seychelles.
And India has donated 50,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine made by the Indian Serum Institute. The Seychelles government, which has a significant Indian population, said it has purchased another 40,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine to have enough to inoculate 70,000 people.
“We have a lot of good friends who love us,” said Vanessa Lesperance, a medical officer in the Indian Ocean island country last month. “This has made it easier for us to get a steady amount of vaccines.”
She added: “We look forward to returning to normal life.” But Dr Sanjeev Pugazhendi, in the government’s health ministry, said the “new normal” in Seychelles would still include clothing, hand washing and social distancing from assemblies, which “I think are here to stay”.
Such measures could be implemented for years, depending on the release of the vaccine in the rest of the world, the duration of vaccine immunity and other factors.
“There will always be a continuing risk of COVID … even if the rest of the world can catch up,” Pugazhendi said.
The so-called immunity of the herd is achieved when enough people are protected from infection or vaccination to make it difficult for the virus to continue to spread. The exact threshold for coronavirus is not known, although some experts suggest that at least 70% of a population should be protected to keep the virus under control. However, the emergence of worrying new versions of coronavirus further complicates the picture.
Since the pandemic began, Seychelles has recorded 2,849 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 11 deaths, according to the African Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The first two positive cases in Seychelles were confirmed on March 14, 2020, in a couple from Seychelles who returned from a trip to Italy.
The country, like most other African nations, quickly imposed a nationwide blockade in which most shops, businesses and schools were closed for three weeks. The airport was closed and ships were prevented from bringing tourists.
Restrictions continue at public gatherings, restaurants and bars. Tourists flying to the Seychelles must have recently had a negative PCR test for coronavirus and have a quarantine period of seven days at a designated hotel, with a negative PCR test at the end of it.
The seven-day average of new daily cases has dropped in the past two weeks, from 49 new cases per 100,000 people on Feb. 15 to 32 new cases per 100,000 people on March 1, according to figures from Johns Hopkins University.
COVID-19 vaccines in Seychelles are voluntary and free. After those in the front line were vaccinated, the elderly were given priority. The images are given in hospitals, clinics, pharmacies and some companies. Now all residents can be inoculated, except those under 18 years of age.
The publicity surrounding the vaccination action helped dispel the misinformation about the shootings, according to medical workers.
“By the time we started administering vaccines to leaders, religious leaders and health workers, this was starting to decline,” said Pugazhendi, a health ministry doctor.
Speaking to the AP last month, Pugazhendi and Lesperance said none of them had a vacation since the pandemic began, almost always given the tropical setting of the Seychelles.
“We look forward to the end of COVID more than anyone else,” Lesperance said.
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Cara Anna from Nairobi contributed.
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