The government is conducting a comprehensive study to track the possible existence of the Delta variant of Covid-19 in the country, after the health ministry detected scientific evidence of the highly infectious variant among local cases. Appearing on the state broadcaster, the Health Minister, Dr Daniel Ngamije said; “As it stands, the tests being conducted prove the signs of delta variant in Rwanda,” he expressed. Ngamije laid out some of the symptoms of the variant which local healthcare workers have often encountered when consulting patients. “We are currently getting new symptoms; some of the patients are reporting with severe headache, general fatigue and lack of oxygen which are all vital signs of this variant,” he said. He added: “Another potential reason is that it comes with severe forms of symptoms and a high probability of death: This is one of the reasons we’re experiencing double digit fatality in a day,” he noted. The highly infectious Covid variant that was first detected in India is feared to have mutated into a deadlier virus which is capable of resisting even the monoclonal antibodies cocktail currently prescribed as cure. Kenya and Uganda have already reported this variant in the East African region. Medical practitioners assert that the Covid-19 Delta variant which was first detected in India can mutate more than 4500 times in three months making it difficult to manage. It is also 60% more transmissible which implies a higher infection rate and 2.2 times more likely to cause hospitalization. The coronavirus has several variants that have been identified after the virus was declared a global pandemic earlier this year. However, some of them have been found to be highly transmissible including Alpha (first detected in the United Kingdom, Beta, which was first found in South Africa, Gamma in Brazil and Delta. More jabs expected Currently, 392,000 people have been vaccinated in Rwanda but the government has opened several avenues through which more vaccines will be procured to ensure at least 60 per cent of the population is inoculated by the end of next year. Among the avenues include a deal to get over 3,500,000 doses from Pfizer while Johnson&Johnson is also set to supply more than 2.1 million doses to Rwanda. Rwanda has also made commendable strides in ensuring local production of vaccines, after the country was named one of the three production hubs, alongside Senegal and South Africa. According to the figures from the ministry of health, Covid-19 deaths in Rwanda have surpassed the 500 mark as they stand at 507 and the total cases stand at 45,039 by Thursday. Of these, 29,207 have recovered, while 15,325 are active cases of which 67 are in critical condition.
