Malawi Rolls Out Second Jab Amid Vaccine Hesitancy
Voice of America
BLANTRYE, MALAWI - Malawi President Lazarus Chakwera led a rollout Friday of a push for a second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, with a strong call to Malawians to go for vaccination to prevent a third wave of the coronavirus pandemic. The call came a day after health authorities in Malawi announced the presence of a more contagious Indian variant in the country, which has infected 14 people. Despite this, authorities bemoan the continued low vaccination rate.
During a televised event at the state residence in Lilongwe, Malawi President Lazarus Chakwera said he and Vice President Saulos Chilima decided to lead the campaign for a second dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine to prove its importance and safety. He said this also was to dispel misconceptions and fears some Malawians have about the COVID-19 vaccination. "The AstraZeneca vaccine we are using is a good vaccine whose aim is to protect us from COVID-19. That’s why my vice president and I were the first to have vaccinated in March, and now we want to become the first to have the second jab in public. Our aim is that you should be protected, there is no need to fear.”
This handout photo from Taiwan Presidential office taken and released March 13, 2025, shows Taiwan President Lai Ching-te speaking in Taipei.
A woman places a candle at the statue of late Pope John Paul II at the Gemelli Hospital, where Pope Francis is being treated for pneumonia, in Rome, March 12, 2025.
FILE - Sebastien Lai, son of pro-democracy Hong Kong activist Jimmy Lai, poses for a portrait in central London on Nov. 26, 2024. FILE - Jimmy Lai is escorted by Correctional Services officers to get on a prison van before appearing in a court in Hong Kong, Dec. 12, 2020.
FILE - Journalist Blessed Mhlanga speaks in Harare, Zimbabwe, in October 2022. (Columbus Mavhunga/VOA)
Specialists work on the facade of a damaged apartment building following a drone attack in Moscow, March 11, 2025.
Local officials and navy personnel attend a joint Iranian, Russian and Chinese military drill in the Gulf of Oman, Iran, on March 12, 2025. (Iranian Army Office via AFP) Chinese navy troops attending a joint naval drill with Iran and Russia stand on the deck of their warship in an official arrival ceremony at Shahid Beheshti port in Chabahar in the Gulf of Oman, Iran, on March 11, 2025.
FILE - A man injured in an explosion at an M23 rally is evacuated from the scene in Bukavu, Democratic Republic of Congo, on Feb. 27, 2025. The Angolan government said on March 12, 2025, that the M23 rebels and the DRC government will enter direct peace talks.
FILE - A demonstrator holds a picture of jailed Kurdish militant leader Abdullah Ocalan during a rally in Diyarbakir, Turkey, Feb. 27, 2025.
In this image taken from video on March 12, 2025, observers and security officers look over the aftermath of a car bomb explosion the previous day at a hotel in the central Somali city of Beledweyne. Beledweyne, Somalia
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi waves as he arrives for Mauritius' 57th National Day celebrations at the Champ De Mars, Port Louis, Mauritius, March 12, 2025. India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi, left, and his Mauritius counterpart Navin Ramgoolam pay homage after laying a wreath at the Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam Botanical Garden during his State visit, in Pamplemousses, Mauritius, March 11, 2025. FILE - Sailors walk on the deck of the INS Imphal, a stealth guided-missile destroyer, at the Naval Dockyard in Mumbai, Dec. 22, 2023.
Police officers guard the Palace of the Republic after Bosnian prosecutors ordered the detention of three top Bosnian Serb officials over a series of separatist actions, in the Bosnian town of Banja Luka, 240 kms northwest of Sarajevo, March 12, 2025. FILE - Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik speaks during an interview with the Associated Press, in the Bosnian town of Banja Luka, 240 kms northwest of Sarajevo, Dec. 29, 2023.
FILE - Georgia's jailed ex-President Mikheil Saakashvili appears via video link during a court hearing regarding anti-government protests in 2007, in Tbilisi, Oct. 27, 2023.