Zambia has relaunched its Covid vaccine campaign in a bid to tackle misinformation surrounding the inoculations and encourage more people to get vaccinated.

President Hakainde Hichilema announced last week that the campaign has also been relaunched in anticipation of the third wave of the virus expected to impact Zambia at the end of the year.

Up to now, just 5% of the eligible population have been vaccinated since the program was initially launched on 14 April this year. However, with this latest campaign relaunch, the government is aiming to vaccinate 8.4 million eligible people aged 18 and over, amounting to 70% of Zambia’s population.

According to President Hichilema, more people need to be vaccinated to successfully combat the coronavirus crisis: "As we relaunch the COVID-19 vaccination campaign, we call upon all Zambians to rise up and join hands in taking full responsibility and control in fighting the Coronavirus pandemic.”

In addition, the President recognised that many citizens of Zambia have been cautious to have the vaccine due to a lack of sufficient information.

The government has stated it will continue its efforts to encourage more people to get vaccinated: "Our vaccination efforts remain key to ensuring that we protect the gains made thus far in our fight against COVID-19. As we continue to roll out the campaign, we remain committed to ensuring the continued supply of sufficient vaccine stock to meet the local demand," said Minister of Health Sylvia Masebo.

To date, China is one of the cooperating partners that have provided Covid vaccines to Zambia, with 100,000 Sinopharm vaccines having already arrived in the country, with more expected.