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March 5, 2021 | Acting Health Director General Dr Patrick Amoth receives the AstraZeneca COVID-19 jab during the official launch of a nationwide vaccination campaign held at the Kenyatta National Hospital which was officiated by Health Principal Secretary Susan Mochache/CFM - Jemimah Mueni

Capital Health

Kenya records 162 COVID-19 cases as infection rate slows to 4.7 percent

NAIROBI, Kenya May 30 – Kenya recorded 162 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday representing a 4.7 percent positive rate on the day the government extended a night curfew.

The infection rate in the country has been on the decline in recent weeks after months of a sustained increase.

The government said Sunday it had extended the nationwide night curfew for 60 more days and banned political gatherings as part of the measures aimed at controlling the spread of the virus.

Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe said the new infections were identified from 3, 452 samples which were tested since Saturday.

The Ministry of Health said it had so far conducted 1, 809, 890 testes since March 2020.

Kagwe also announced that 16 new deaths that raised fatalities in the country from the virus to 3, 157.

643 patients have in the meantime recovered from the virus bringing the total number of recoveries in the country to 116, 776.

“406 were from the home based and isolation care while 237 were discharged from various health facilities,” he said.

A total of 1, 225 patents are currently admitted in various facilities countrywide while 4, 724 patients are home based.

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Kenya on Friday kicked off its second round of vaccination exercise with the Chairperson of the Vaccine Taskforce Dr. Willis Akhwale assuring that those who are due for the vaccination have already received notification messages.

“In keeping with the recommendations of the World Health Organization, second dose is administered after 12 weeks so people who are due have received a message as a reminder which is being sent 48 hours to when one is expected to go for their second jab from tomorrow,” Dr. Akhwale said.

Kenya received 1.02 million doses of the AstraZeneca Vaccine from the COVAX facility in March this year initially targetting frontline workers.

On Sunday, 72,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine was brought in from South Sudan which could  it preserve it until it starts vaccinations.

Kagwe has reiterated the government’s commitment to ensure that 60 percent of the population is vaccinated by June 2022.

He however, warned that the risk of Kenya experiencing the COVID-19 4 wave is imminent due to the new variants from the United Kingdom, India and South Africa that are fast spreading in the country.

Kagwe said the variants had been detected in 39 samples from Kenyans who had no travel history.

He noted that 28 samples had the Indian variant while six had the UK variant. One sample had the South African variant. Four had variants from the two countries.

“It is important to note that the ongoing genomic surveillance has revealed early and established community transmission of both UK and Indian variants of concern in Kisumu, Mombasa and Kisumu Counties,” he said.

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