Over 90 pct of Togo's health workers fully vaccinated

Togo rolled out its mass COVID-19 vaccination campaign in March. /CFP

More than 90 per cent of Togo's health workers have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, bolstering the country's fight against the pandemic.

According to data published by the World Health Organization on Friday, a total of 30,867 health workers, or around 93 per cent, received their second dose in May, having taken their first doses in March.

"This has seen a significant reduction in the number of health workers being infected with COVID-19, bolstering the country's response to the pandemic," the agency said.

"Between 7 March 2020, when Togo detected its index case, and 24 May this year, nearly a thousand health workers tested positive for the virus. Since the end of May, after the vast majority of them received their vaccine second dose, only 56 health worker infections have been recorded."

Togo rolled out its mass vaccination campaign in March after receiving 196,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccines through the COVAX facility. China donated 200,000 doses of the Sinovac vaccine in April and further 100,620 Pfizer doses arrived in May.

The WHO said that the arrival of vaccines boosted Togo's vaccination exercise, as the country aims to inoculate its population of eight million people.

By Thursday, the West African country had reported 18,605 COVID-19 infections with 172 deaths.

More than 474,000 people in the country have received at least one jab of the vaccines.