Sri Lanka marked the first anniversary of its Covid vaccination drive yesterday, having started it on January 29, 2021 with the AstraZeneca Covishield vaccines donated by India the previous day under its “Vaccine Maitri” (Vaccine Friendship) initiative. In the intervening one year, Sri Lanka has managed to inoculate nearly 65 percent of its entire population with two doses of the vaccine while another 25 percent had also received the booster (third) dose.
There is absolutely no doubt that the successful vaccination drive helped to keep the Covid casualty and hospitalisation rate rather low, compared to countries with similar populations. Of the 600,000 or so Sri Lankans who contracted Covid, around 577,000 have recovered completely.
This is a remarkable achievement by any stretch of the imagination, given that many Third World countries, especially those in Africa, are yet to inoculate even a single person against Covid. In fact, Sri Lanka is ranked in the top five countries in terms of Covid vaccination.
The credit for this massive undertaking should primarily go to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the Government, the Security Forces, Police and the Government health sector. The President took the initiative to personally contact Heads of State and heads of multilateral organisations to procure the needed vaccines, at a time when there was intense competition by both developed and developing countries for them.
There were fears that we could lose out completely, as most rich countries had hoarded huge quantities of vaccines that actually exceeded their total populations. Nevertheless, Sri Lanka’s friendly relations with countries across the globe led to vaccines being donated by China, India, USA and the WHO-Covax initiative. Vaccines were also purchased on commercial terms by the State Pharmaceuticals Corporation under the directive of State Minister Prof. Channa Jayasumana.
But getting down vaccines alone would not have sufficed, if not for the sheer dedication of the Security Forces and health workers for getting them into the people’s arms. They worked 24/7 for several months at a stretch, risking their very lives, to inoculate fellow citizens. Several health workers did indeed make the ultimate sacrifice as they contracted Covid. The Army, in particular, even deployed mobile teams of vaccinators who reached the remotest parts of the country to inject the elderly, infirm and others who could not go to the nearest vaccination centre due to lack of transport or various other reasons. Several other countries had since emulated this example to inoculate their citizens living in remote or inaccessible locations.
In terms of numbers, Sri Lanka’s vaccination drive is rather impressive for a country of its size and economy. Sri Lanka has up to now received 51 million vaccine doses, out of which 26 million were Sinopharm (donations from the Government of China and commercial purchases), Pfizer 21.5 million, AstraZeneca/Covishield 2.8 million, Moderna 1.5 million (a donation from the US through COVAX) and Sputnik V (330,000), which partly comprised a donation from Russia. Sri Lanka has now completed its Covid vaccine imports, unless the need arises for a fourth booster dose in the near future. This is being tried out in some countries such as Israel.
Out of the over-12 population of 17.6 million eligible for vaccination, 16.5 million had obtained the first dose, 13.8 million the second dose and just over five million the booster dose. Vaccination centres are still open for the second and booster jabs and anyone who needs the jab can just walk in and get it done, entirely free of charge. The Government had spent almost Rs.900 billion for vaccine procurement, PCR testing and medical treatment, in a sign of its commitment to eradicate Covid from our midst.
While the vaccination rate for the first and second doses is admirable, there has been a dip in the numbers of those who have come forward to get the booster dose. At five million or just 36 percent of the eligible population, this is rather low. Health authorities and medical experts attribute this to the spread of misinformation on vaccines spread by certain elements via the social media. Unfortunately, many youth seem to have fallen prey to this vicious and false propaganda and shied away from the life-saving vaccine.
There is no truth whatsoever in the stories spread via the social media to the effect that one could lose fertility or that one’s DNA could get altered as a result of the Pfizer mRNA vaccine. No vaccine can alter the body’s genetic material or cause infertility. On the other hand, it is true that vaccines can cause certain temporary side effects such as fever, vomiting, joint pains and so on. This is a sign that the vaccine is working and the symptoms generally disappear on their own in a day or two. A Paracetamol tablet or two can alleviate the pain and everything should be back to normal by that time.
As the Public Health Inspectors (PHIs) have commented recently, the health authorities must engage in a vigourous campaign to counter these false narratives. A surge of Covid cases is already being seen, as people are losing their vaccine immunity. If more people do not come forward to get the booster jab, all the efforts of the Security Forces and the health sectors to control the pandemic will be in vain. The country can no longer afford to go for another lockdown as the economy is already at a low ebb after repeated lockdowns and restrictions imposed during 2020 and 2021. It is, therefore, the duty of all those still holding out on the booster to get it as soon as possible