Only through the vaccination of Kenyans can we resolve the issue of contagions in the country and return to normality.
This is the position of the Government, in announcing and showing the arrival of the first 410,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine from Great Britain, which took place on Saturday, 31 July 2021, following President Kenyatta's recent visit to London.
This delivery could not have come at a better time," said Chief Health Administrator Mercy Mwangangi, attending the delivery of the vaccines at Nairobi's JKIA international airport, "to strengthen the serious campaign to vaccinate our people against Covid-19, a disease that has caused untold suffering not only to Kenyans, but to the world.
According to Mwangangi, delays in the delivery of vaccines are the main cause of the increase in cases in the country and he urged all citizens who have yet to receive their first dose and those waiting for the second to come to the appropriate locations to get vaccinated.
An additional 407 000 doses will soon arrive from the UK, and Mwangangi reiterated that this is an important step in the battle against the vaccine, but the war can only be won through the individual responsibility of citizens.
In the meantime, the data coming from the Kenyan Ministry of Health are still alarming: the percentage in the last 24 hours remains high, 15.6%, and the new cases recorded are 1259, but this is certainly an apparent figure, the picture these days of the nation speaks of thousands of positives and an increasing number of deaths, with hospitals that are once again going to the maximum capacity and treatment possibilities, especially with regard to oxygen.
In the meantime, only 1,062,413 people have been fully vaccinated and another 661,314 have yet to receive their second dose.
While Nairobi continues to lead by far in infections, also due to the high number of swabs carried out, infections are also rising on the coast, in Mombasa (96 cases) and Kilifi (60) as well as Kwale (13 cases).
Only five deaths have been reported in the last 24 hours, but daily reports are always biased, with dozens of suspicious deaths being reported every day.
Currently, Kenya's intensive care units are treating 185 patients, while another 1386 are in other health facilities and 3965 are being treated in isolation facilities or at home. Another 445 patients are in general wards and need oxygen.
Most hospitals in the capital are now in full occupation and hundreds of patients are reported to be waiting for treatment and without access to emergency treatment.
"We are going in the wrong direction and it is time Kenyans realised this," said Director-General of Health Patrick Amoth, "especially the residents currently living in Nairobi. We need to go back to the restrictions and prevention that were basic at the beginning of the pandemic.