Cameroon's Health Ministry Suspends Rollout Of AstraZeneca Vaccine As Precaution Measure

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 19th March, 2021) Cameroon has decided to suspend the start of its COVID-19 immunization campaign with the AstraZeneca/Oxford vaccine, slated for Saturday, as a precaution measure, according to the Ministry of Public Health.

In recent days, a number of countries across the world have temporarily halted the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine following reports on isolated cases of post-inoculation side effects, such as thrombosis. Apart from Cameroon, in Africa, Guinea-Bissau and the Democratic Republic of the Congo have postponed inoculation with the vaccine.

"The Scientific Council of Public Health Emergencies requested that the administration of the AstraZeneca vaccine proposed to the Cameroonian health system whose delivery was previously scheduled for 20 March be suspended according to the principle of precaution and prudence," the ministry said in a statement issued on Thursday.

The announcement came despite the recent report by the European Medicines Agency, saying that there was no evidence that the AstraZeneca vaccine was associated with increased risks of blood clot events, and appeals from the World Health Organization to not lose confidence in the vaccine.