Some 300 coronavirus-vaccine shots administered each week in Tunisia, says Riadh Daghfous

Some 300 coronavirus-vaccine shots are administered each week in Tunisia, said Director General of the National Pharmacovigilance Centre and member of the Scientific Committee to Combat the Coronavirus Riadh Daghfous. The vaccine currently administered in Tunisia and worldwide is the "monovalent Pfizer," which adapts to new strains of COVID-19 and has proven its efficiency against the OMICRON variant (XBB 1.5), the same source told TAP. "This new vaccine has been administered in Tunisia for two weeks now, and the vaccination pace is getting better," he added. Tunisia had obtained authorisation for the marketing of this vaccine in September 2023, Daghfous indicated, specifying that the monovalent Pfizer vaccine (for the OMICRON variant XBB 1.5) has a long shelf life. Vaccination is crucial for getting protected against COVID-19, he affirmed, adding that the contribution of the vaccine is paramount for strengthening the immune defences. Vaccine side effects generally appear right after vaccination or afte r a few weeks at most, he pointed out, specifying the national Pharmacovigilance Centre has received 3,318 reports of people suffering side effects from the COVID-19 vaccine since the beginning of the national vaccination campaign in March 2021. The total number of vaccine shots administered has exceeded 13 million since the start of the national jab campaign to date. Daghfous also said that the centre has received 4,737 cases of vaccine hesitancy. Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse