Slovakia Donates 440 Thousand Corona Virus Vaccines to Rwanda and Kenya

11. October 2021

The Slovak Republic delivered significant assistance in the form of hundreds of thousands of vaccines against corona virus to two partner countries in Africa – to Rwanda and Kenya on 8 October 2021. “Slovakia fully supports the fair distribution of vaccines as the fight against the pandemic will be successful only when vaccines are also available in less developed countries; and especially African countries have long drawn attention to the need to meet the principle of vaccine fairness,” stated State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic Ingrid Brocková on this occasion.

On 7 October 2021 the vaccines against COVID-19 were dispatched from the Bratislava M. R. Štefánik Airport to Rwanda and Kenya. This assistance was handed over to partners in Kigali and Nairobi on 8 October by the Ambassador of the Slovak Republic in Nairobi Katarína Žuffa Leligdonová.

AstraZeneca vaccines are provided as part of the official development aid of the Slovak Republic under the SlovakAid brand and within the Team Europe initiative, to which Slovakia has actively contributed in several ways since the corona crisis outbreak. Transport costs for the transfer of vaccines are covered by the European Union up to 75 %. “The concrete and effective help of AstraZeneca vaccines being gifted to Rwanda and Kenya is a strong expression of solidarity and unity from our country,” highlighted State Secretary Brocková and recalled that “this has not been the first time nor the last time that Slovakia has helped by sharing vaccines with countries in need, which also shows how it has joined the Team Europe initiative.”

Kenya has been a key partner and program country for development cooperation from the Slovak Republic since the founding of SlovakAid and the biggest recipient of bilateral development cooperation from the Slovak Republic. The full vaccination rate of Kenyan inhabitants is currently only 2.9 %. The donation of 160 thousand vaccine doses against the COVID-19 disease is a suitable and effective complement to the activities that Slovakia carries out in Kenya with the objective of alleviating the social and economic impact of the pandemic on the local inhabitants and the development of the country.

Another important partner country of SlovakAid is Rwanda, which is playing a leading role in the fight against the COVID-19 disease in the region of East sub-Saharan Africa. The donation of 280 thousand doses of COVID-19 vaccine to Rwanda is therefore not only an important gesture of solidarity, but also a targeted form of aid to a country that, despite limited opportunities, is one of the most active in the region in the fight against the spread of the pandemic. “For global problems there is a need for global solutions, and Slovakia remains a constructive partner actively participating in these solutions,” emphasized State Secretary Brocková in the end.

Source: MFEA SR