Burundi, which has been one of the few nations on the African continent without a COVID-19 vaccination campaign, says it will now accept doses into the country.
On Wednesday, Health Minister Thaddee Ndikumana said Burundi will receive vaccines through the support of the World Bank but added that the country will not take responsibility for any adverse side effects arising from them.
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Why this matters: Burundi has reported thousands of cases of COVID-19. Earlier this year, Ndikumana reportedly said the country did not need vaccines, citing a high recovery rate among coronavirus patients.
The announcement of Burundi’s about-face came on the same day that Tanzania, which also held off on vaccinations, launched its own immunization campaign.
“We will continue to engage with Burundi. And in the coming weeks, of course, we will be intensifying our efforts there to understand the gaps and areas where we can support them,” said John Nkengasong, director at the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, during a press conference Thursday.
The final holdout: When Burundi begins vaccinations, Eritrea will be the only country on the African continent without a COVID-19 immunization campaign.
Nkengasong said Africa CDC doesn’t know of a specific reason that Eritrea, which is one of the world’s most reclusive nations, has not yet expressed interest in acquiring vaccines.
“We continue to hope that the situation will change, and we will continue to engage them,” he said.
About the author
Sara Jervingsarajerving
Sara Jerving is a Senior Reporter at Devex, where she covers global health. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, VICE News, and Bloomberg News among others. Sara holds a master's degree from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism where she was a Lorana Sullivan fellow. She was a finalist for One World Media's Digital Media Award in 2021; a finalist for the Livingston Award for Young Journalists in 2018; and she was part of a VICE News Tonight on HBO team that received an Emmy nomination in 2018. She received the Philip Greer Memorial Award from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism in 2014.
