30 succumb to Covid-19 as 622 test positive in Kenya today

Kenya has in the last 24 hours reported 622 cases of Covid-19.

In a statement, Health CS Mutahi Kagwe (pictured) said the positive cases were from a sample size of 6,236.

This comes as Kenya lost 30 people to the disease in the last 24 hours, pushing fatalities to 3,514.

The positivity rate is now 10.0 per cent.

Of the cases, 590 are Kenyans while 32 are foreigners. Some 369 are men while women numbered 253.

The youngest is a two-month-old baby while the oldest is 93 years. The total confirmed positive cases in Kenya now stand at 180,498 and cumulative tests so far conducted are 1,920,018.

In terms of county distribution Nairobi led with 115, followed by Siaya 83, Busia 69, Kisumu 66, Mombasa 47, Kiambu 38, Kericho 35, Homa Bay 20 and Uasin Gishu 19.

Others are Vihiga 18, Trans Nzoia 17, Kakamega 15, Nakuru 11, Bungoma 10, Kisii 8, Machakos 7, Kilifi 6, Murang’a 5 and Kajiado 5 among others.

Today 313 patients recovered from the disease, 206 from the Home-Based and Isolation Care programme, while 107 are from various health facilities countrywide.

"Total recoveries now stand at 123,363 of whom 89,398 are from the Home-Based Care and Isolation programme, while 33,965 are from various health facilities countrywide.," Kagwe said.

A total of 1,053 patients are currently admitted to various health facilities countrywide, while 6,612 patients are under the Home-Based Isolation and Care programme. Some 101 patients are in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), 33 of whom are on ventilatory support and 51 on supplemental oxygen.

As of today, 1,201,325 vaccines have so far been administered across the country, Kagwe added.

Of these, the total first doses are 997,420 while the second doses are 203,905. "The uptake of the second dose among those who received their first dose is at 20.4 per cent with the majority being men at 56 per cent while women are at 44 per cent. The proportion of adults fully vaccinated is 0.75 per cent.

Meanwhile, counties within the Lake Region Economic Bloc now want the national government to give them the greenlight to directly import Covid-19 vaccines.

In a joint statement, governors Wycliffe Oparanya (Kakamega), Anyang’ Nyong’o (Kisumu) and James Ongwae (Kisii), said their counties continue to bear the brunt of the pandemic, and the only way to salvage the situation is through intensified vaccination.

According to Nyong’o, the vaccine importation by the national government was way below the requirement, at a time when infections are projected to rise. Nyong’o said counties have the capacity to work with development partners in acquisition of vaccines.

“We are appealing to the national government to listen to our cry, so that we can intervene as counties and bring in the approved vaccines.”

He noted that countries which have intensified vaccination have opened up their economies, and reduced the burden of the pandemic.

“It has been proven that if you vaccinate over 90 per cent of the population, then you can open up,” he said.

The governors’ sentiments come at a time when the national government has intensified Covid-19 containment measures in the region, with curfew hours set at 7pm, three hours ahead of the national curfew which runs from 10pm to 4am.

The new containment measures follow reports of increased infection rates in the region, especially the Indian variant which was first detected in Kisumu.