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. 2022 Dec 31;18(1):2034457.
doi: 10.1080/21645515.2022.2034457. Epub 2022 Mar 3.

Low coverage of COVID-19 vaccines in Africa: current evidence and the way forward

Lukman Lawal  1   2 , Munira Aminu Bello  1   3 , Tonderai Murwira  1 , Clement Avoka  1   4 , Shamsuddeen Yusuf Ma'aruf  5 , Imoetin Harrison Omonhinmin  1   6   7 , Pamela Maluleke  1   8 , Christos Tsagkaris  9 , Helen Onyeaka  10
Affiliations

Low coverage of COVID-19 vaccines in Africa: current evidence and the way forward

Lukman Lawal et al. Hum Vaccin Immunother. .

Abstract

Disparities in COVID-19 vaccine coverage across the globe have uncovered inequities in global healthcare. While more than half of the population of the developed countries have been fully vaccinated, only a small percentage of the African population has received one vaccine dose so far, a far cry from the global vaccination targets. Furthermore, several low and middle income (LMICs) African countries lack the competence, infrastructure, logistics, and financial resources to mass-vaccinate their populations. This paper highlights the causes and implications of the low COVID-19 vaccine coverage on Africa and the global community, and discusses strategies for restructuring and strengthening COVID-19 vaccination in Africa.

Keywords: Africa; COVID-19 pandemic; COVID-19 vaccination; Covid-19 vaccine inequity; LMIC; SARS-COV-2; developing countries; disparities; low coverage of vaccine; vaccine hesitancy.

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Conflict of interest statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

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