THE government has commenced vaccination of a new cohort of the population. It involved our adolescent population, those between ages 12 and 18.

Over 200 children were vaccinated on the first day of the roll-out of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine which was witnessed by Health Minister, Dr. Frank Anthony and Education Minister, Priya Manickchand, among other senior officials.

The current batch of 146,250 Pfizer doses of vaccines is donated to Guyana and forms part of a larger donation of 5.5 million doses from the US Government to the Caribbean Community (CARICOM).

This measure taken by the administration to vaccinate the adolescent cohort of the population is consistent with the overall goal of achieving herd immunity which is vital to contain and ultimately eradicate COVID-19 virus.

Guyana is ahead of several countries in the region when it comes to the number of eligible persons who have already been vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus. Despite attempts by the political opposition to dissuade Guyanese from taking the vaccine, uptake levels continue to accelerate. The statistics show that nearly 20 per cent of the adult population has already been fully vaccinated. Over 460,000 doses of the vaccines have already been administered and that number continues to climb with each passing day.

One cannot however, take comfort in numbers. And while there can be no perfect statistic in terms of vaccination rates, a comparison of vaccination metrics across the region and for that matter the world as a whole can be a useful guide in terms of measuring the progress made by the Guyana Government in its ongoing efforts to reach the desired level of herd immunity.

The commencement of adolescent vaccination is yet another indication of the desire of the current administration to restore normalcy in the country. The re-opening of schools for the new September term is yet another welcome development, even though it is not completely free of some element of risk.

This is why the administration is not taking anything for granted. And even though the vast majority of teachers, parents and guardians welcome the reopening of schools, the government has made it abundantly clear that only children who are vaccinated and who followed the guidelines established by the Ministry of Health will be allowed into the classroom. The same is also true of teachers who are expected to be vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus or subject themselves to the required COVID-19 tests.

The decision to reopen schools has been welcomed by many including the UNICEF representative in Guyana, Mr. Nicolas Pron, who underscored the importance of children returning to school. He posited that school closures do impact on students’ learning, health and well-being at critical developmental stages with profound repercussions for each child, their family and the economy.

The importance of re-opening schools cannot be overemphasised. It is an established fact that the longer children stay away from school, the more they become adversely affected not only at the cognitive level but also at the emotional and socialisation levels.

The Guyana Government must be commended for making vaccines for adolescents available, especially at a time when several countries are challenged to procure vaccines for their adult populations.

More significantly, the vaccines were approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) based on clinical trials which found the vaccines to be remarkably safe and effective for both adults and teens. Currently, clinical trials are underway for children as young as six months.

The battle between viral infections and man is as old as the hills.  The long-standing struggle between humans and microscopic disease-bearing viruses has had a long history. Indeed, several decisive victories were scored, the most notable being the fight against smallpox, SARS and Ebola. In the end it is the ingenuity, determination and resourcefulness of man that ultimately prevailed.

The current fight against the COVID-19 pandemic is no different. Our success in confronting the spread and eradication of the virus, however, depends to a large extent on individual, and by extension, the collective efforts of us all. In the words of our national poet Martin Carter, it is a case of ‘all are involved, all are consumed.’