In many countries, COVID vaccination has been viewed as a race, with the finishing line being double vaccination of a high proportion of the population. Unfortunately, those countries who were initially successful face the challenge of a runner that has reached what they thought was the finishing line being told to run on, as more vaccinations are required.
Africa faces a different challenge. Despite the success of a handful of countries, with just 9% of the continent’s total population fully vaccinated, the race has yet to commence.
In response to the emergence of omicron, many countries are now offering “booster” vaccinations. It is uncertain whether additional COVID vaccinations will be needed in future, but governments should be prepared for a situation where ongoing vaccination cycles are required to suppress COVID for many years.
