Hosia Mviringi
The SADC region has been called to strengthen regional collaboration in the fights against Covid-19.
The region has, in recent weeks, seen an aggressive rise in infection and fatality levels across most countries in the region.
At a SADC Council of Ministers meeting, which converged in Maputo on June 22, 2021, it was agreed that solitary efforts against the disease would be a wasted effort as intra-regional cross border activities puts everyone at risk.
Collaboration in the areas of mitigation, control, treatment and vaccine distribution between SADC member states and international partners was imperative if the region was to attain it’s set targets of reducing infection and fatality, and to achieve a 60 percent vaccination target by 2022.
Speaking in a statement, Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Professor Amon Murwira said it was also important to step up research on the use of traditional African medicines as a way of exploiting locally available African remedies.
“Discussions centred on how to strengthen collaboration within the region and with our international partners to increase vaccine acquisition and rollout if Africa is to achieve 60 per cent vaccinated population by 2022.
The importance of stepping up research on the use of African traditional medicines as well as the call for waiver of Trade Related aspects of Intellectual Property Rights at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) to allow for manufacture of vaccines In the region were also discussed,” he said.
Professor Murwira also revealed that Harare Institute of Technology and Sables were receiving funding through SADC for the manufacture of Covid-19 related Personal Protective Equipment.
The Minister assured the nation and the region that the two institutions were ready to export these products into the region. The products were being showcased at a SADC Business Forum which was organised to run concurrently with the SADC Extraordinary Summit in Maputo.
SADC region is renowned for its highly mobile population and economies which highly dependent on cross border grade activities.
This makes the call to collaborate on Covod-19 related effort very noble and welcome.
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