Global EditionASIA 中文雙語Fran?ais
    World
    Home / World / Africa

    Tanzania has no vaccination plan, stirring controversy

    By Otiato Opali in Nairobi, Kenya | chinadaily.com.cn | Updated: 2021-02-04 20:10
    Share
    Share - WeChat

    Dorothy Gwajima, Tanzania's health minister, has said the country has no plans to receive vaccines for COVID-19. The minister was addressing the press on Tuesday, just days after President John Pombe Magufuli expressed doubt about the vaccines without offering evidence.

    Gwajima touted the use of traditional medicines in the fight against COVID-19 and other diseases.

    "Many journalists have been asking about the COVID-19 vaccines and ways to prevent the disease in Tanzania. Unfortunately, the ministry of health has no plan to receive any of the vaccines being used in other countries for now," Gwajima said.

    The minister stressed cleanliness, washing hands, eating a balanced diet and exercising as effective methods to control COVID-19 and other diseases. She said traditional medicines and steam inhalation proved successful in treating many diseases.

    Last week, Magufuli warned his health ministry against rushing to adopt COVID-19 vaccines, suggesting the vaccines may not be safe or effective. While addressing his citizens in Western Tanzania on Jan 28, Magufuli expressed doubt about vaccines produced by Western countries.

    "If the white man was able to come up with vaccinations, then vaccinations for AIDS would have been brought, tuberculosis would be a thing of the past, vaccines for malaria and cancer would have been found," Magufuli said.

    The president directed the ministry of health to adopt a vaccine only after it is certified by Tanzanian experts. He said Tanzanians must not be used as guinea pigs in vaccine trials.

    According to Gwajima, there are some traditional medicines against the virus which were approved by the government chemist and are already in the market for public consumption.

    "I am one of the people who have personally used these medicines and they really helped me and my family in different times. We have some of them here," Gwajima said.

    Gwajima also warned local media outlets not to report unofficial information on coronavirus or any disease. The warning came after the Catholic Church in Tanzania said it had observed an increase in requiem masses, blaming funerals on a spike in coronavirus infections.

    After Magufuli made his remarks last week, Matshidiso Moeti, the World Health Organization's regional director for Africa, said the vaccines are safe and backed by science.

    "I am urging Tanzania to ramp up public health measures such as wearing masks to fight COVID-19. Science shows vaccines work and I encourage the government to prepare for a COVID-19 vaccination campaign. WHO is here to support the government and people of Tanzania," Moeti said.

    Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO director general, echoed Moeti's comments and called on Tanzania to be more collaborative in handling the virus.

    "I join Matshidiso Moeti's call for strong health measures and COVID-19 vaccine preparedness. Data-sharing by Tanzania is also key, with cases surfacing among travelers and visitors over the months," Ghebreyesus said.

    Tanzania has not updated its COVID-19 data since April last year, leaving the last number of reported confirmed cases at 509 and the death toll at 21. Those are also the latest figures the Africa Center for Disease Control and Prevention has in its records.

    Most Viewed in 24 Hours
    Top
    BACK TO THE TOP
    English
    Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site.
    License for publishing multimedia online 0108263

    Registration Number: 130349
    FOLLOW US
    2024你懂的网站无码内射| 国产综合无码一区二区辣椒| 中文字幕手机在线观看| 无码精品人妻一区| 日韩精品少妇无码受不了| 中文无码喷潮在线播放| 中文有无人妻vs无码人妻激烈| 国内精品人妻无码久久久影院| 久久久久久国产精品无码下载| 91中文字幕在线观看| 亚洲AV无码成H人在线观看| 无码人妻AV免费一区二区三区| 免费A级毛片无码无遮挡内射| 欧美中文字幕在线| 中文字幕无码日韩专区| 国产日韩精品无码区免费专区国产 | 影音先锋中文无码一区| 国产在线拍揄自揄拍无码| 亚洲人成人无码网www电影首页| 久久中文字幕无码专区| 欧美日韩v中文字幕| а中文在线天堂| 中文字幕在线观看| 国产中文在线观看| 日本乱中文字幕系列| 最近2019在线观看中文视频| 久久精品aⅴ无码中文字字幕不卡 久久精品aⅴ无码中文字字幕重口 | 91中文字幕在线| 免费A级毛片无码A∨中文字幕下载 | 亚洲一区AV无码少妇电影☆| 亚洲中文字幕无码久久2017| 中文字幕无码无码专区| 中文字幕无码人妻AAA片| 亚洲精品无码午夜福利中文字幕 | 国产亚洲精久久久久久无码| 日韩人妻无码一区二区三区久久| 无码少妇一区二区性色AV| 亚洲AV永久无码区成人网站| 人禽无码视频在线观看| 狠狠精品久久久无码中文字幕 | 亚洲伊人成无码综合网|