[Photo: Reuters]
Officials in Burundi have expelled 12 Rwandans for failing to get vaccinated against Covid-19.
The 12 including women and children spent more than five days on the Nyakarama hill in Kirundo province in northern Burundi.
They said they had to flee the ongoing mandatory vaccination campaign in Rwanda.
Kirundo provincial governor Albert Hatungimana directed that they be deported to Rwanda.
In a security meeting, the governor signaled that he could not welcome people who do not adhere to the government’s Covid-19 response programme.
He noted that everyone had to get vaccinated so as to be allowed to stay in Burundi.
Rwanda’s Ministry of Health defined a clear vaccination plan as soon as an agreement was finalised with COVAX, a global initiative aimed at equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines.
The plan had a priority list to ensure that essential workers and persons most at risk of infection and COVID-19-related fatalities would receive the vaccine first.
The list of 3 million included frontline healthcare workers, the elderly, individuals with underlying conditions, and people living in crowded settings such as refugees and prison populations.
Other essential workers such as teachers and women and men in uniform were also included.
As of now, the Rwandan Government now says all eligible adults should get the available mandatory Covid vaccine doses.