Kenya Targeted for UK COVID-19 Vaccine Trials

 A health worker vaccinating a child against malaria in Ndhiwa, Homabay County on September 13, 2019.  Must
A health worker vaccinating a child against malaria in Ndhiwa, Homabay County on September 13, 2019.
Photo
Ministry of Health

After developing a vaccine for the Coronavirus, United Kingdom is considering conducting tests in Kenya.

The vaccine developed by scientists from Oxford commenced its first human trials on Thursday, April 23 with two volunteers injected.

The two who are scientists were the first batch of more than 800 people recruited for the study where half will receive the Covid-19 vaccine and half a control vaccine which protects against meningitis but not coronavirus.

An image of a Covid-19 vaccine
A woman holds a small bottle labelled with a "Vaccine Covid-19" sticker taken on April 10, 2020.
File

The volunteers will not know which of the two vaccines they are getting but the doctors conducting the trial will.

An article published by the BBC on Thursday, April 24 revealed that the UK is considering testing the vaccine in Kenya.

"The Oxford team is also considering a vaccine trial in Africa, possibly in Kenya, where the rates of transmission are growing from a lower base."

In an interview with the BBC, the media house's Medical Correspondent Fergus Walsh also revealed that the UK is considering a try out of the vaccine in the country.

"The team in Oxford have a really strong record going back 30 years and they have developed a lot of successful prototype vaccines against another type of Coronavirus, MARS which has done well in clinical trials.

"They have also developed vaccines against the plague and malaria. If they don't get early quick results in the UK, they are considering a trial in Kenya where the epidemic of Coronavirus may well be on the rise.

"This virus is known, this vaccine is known to produce a strong antibody response but that doesn't necessarily equate to protection, we are going to need many vaccines, there are dozens in development," said Walsh.

Speaking to kenyans.co.ke Acting Director General of Health Patrick Amoth denied having discussions with UK over testing the virus in Kenya.

"I've just seen the news in the media, whatever trial that we are going to do, we are going to do it with World Health Organization (W.H.O) not with an individual country."

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