"Yes, I know I brought them, they came from there," says Rui, wearing a black t-shirt, as he linked his arm to receive the second dose of Astrazeneca at the vaccination center that authorities wanted to show journalists as an example of the parents.
With 30 million people, Angola has 15.6 million eligible to be vaccinated. In total, 1.7 million doses have already been administered and the country already has 642,000 people with complete vaccination.
The majority of vaccines administered in Angola are from Astrazeneca, to which are added Pfizer, Sinovac and Sputnik B, the latter two not recognized by the European Medicines Authority (EMA).
Health Minister Sílvia Lutucuta accompanied the journalists and the Portuguese ambassador on the visit and explained that the Covax mechanism will allow six million people to be vaccinated. The rest will have to be guaranteed by Angola, via purchase or bilateral donations.
Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa brought 50,000 doses, but the search for vaccines on the international market is the country's main priority.
The objective is the acquisition to continue with the "vaccination program", said the minister, stressing that the country has doses to guarantee the completion of the population that has already received the first dose of vaccines.
In total, it is a "very ambitious plan that foresees costs in excess of 342 million dollars", he explained, admitting that the lack of vaccines in the international market is hampering the process.
In Angola, there is no constraint on age access to vaccination, said the minister. Each person must register, request vaccination and are then notified by SMS or email.
But, sitting in the plastic chair while waiting for recovery after the vaccine, Rui only believes that the vaccination process will be successful when the authorities start to enter the poorest neighborhoods.
"We need more information, we need to go to the neighborhoods", said the resident of the capital, stressing that those who live in the city "want to be vaccinated". However, those who live in poor neighborhoods, musseques, and rural areas tend to have more resistance, he admitted.
