Coronavirus: WHO reviews data after some vaccinated Seychelles residents test positive
The country’s health ministry and the world health body, however, said that most of the residents contracting the infections were not fully vaccinated.
The World Health Organization said on Tuesday it was reviewing the situation in Seychelles, an island country in the Indian Ocean, after over one-third of residents who tested positive for the coronavirus last week had been fully vaccinated, reported Reuters.
“Our teams continue to review the data, assess progress and understand the trends,” a WHO spokesperson told Reuters.
On Monday, the country’s health ministry had said that the number of active coronavirus cases had more than doubled since last week to 2,486 and 37% of them had received both shots of a vaccine, reported Bloomberg. Seychelles, which has a population of less than 1 lakh, has so far reported 8,172 infections and 21 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University.
However, the country’s health ministry and the WHO stressed on the fact that most of the residents contracting the infections were not fully vaccinated. They also said that no beneficiary of both shots of a vaccine had died.
Seychelles health ministry added that 80% of cases being treated at hospitals had not received the vaccination dose and were patients with co-morbidities.
The WHO said the vaccinations alone would not stop transmission and urged residents to take preventive measures such as physical distancing, wearing masks and washing hands.
The country, which has vaccinated more residents than any other country, has been using two vaccines for inoculating its population – China’s Sinopharm and the Oxford vaccine, developed in collaboration with drug firm AstraZeneca.
Till Tuesday, Sinopharm has been administered to 57% of the total residents who have been fully inoculated. The AstraZeneca vaccine jabs were administered to the remaining 43%. Nearly 60% of the population received both doses so far, the WHO said.
Amid the increase in cases, Seychelles had re-imposed curbs, including cancelling sports events, closing schools and prohibiting mingling of households, last week. The government also asked those arriving to the islands to produce a negative Covid-19 test administered four days before their departure. The requirement was also for those who had been completely vaccinated.
