KIGALI, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Rwanda's COVID-19 infection rates have dropped drastically since December when the highly infectious Omicron variant drove up the figures, an official said Wednesday.
"We have seen new cases dropping considerably compared to December when we experienced the fourth wave due to the Omicron virus. A seven-day positivity rate has dropped from about 10 percent in December to 0.02 percent currently," the Ministry of Health spokesperson Julien Niyingabira told Xinhua.
In 24 hours through late Tuesday, Rwanda saw two consecutive days of no new infection recorded from about 10,000 tests conducted countrywide. At the same time, there is no COVID-19 case in treatment centers countrywide, he said.
The transmission over the past seven days indicated only 21 new cases were recorded.
Niyingabira attributed the drop in infection rates to strict enforcement of preventive measures by the government and various stakeholders.
Rwanda has recorded an accumulated case log of 129,769 confirmed cases as of April 19, with 1,459 related deaths.
A total of 8,944,917 people have received the first dose of COVID-19 vaccines while 8,285,705 people have received the second dose as of April 19, according to daily updates of the Ministry of Health.
At least 3,691,775 people had received the booster jab by Tuesday.
The Ministry of Health has repeatedly warned against complacency and Niyingabira reiterated that wearing face masks remains mandatory.
"Even though we have reported zero new infections, this is drawn from tests conducted on a daily basis. It doesn't mean that we don't have a single patient with COVID in the country, that is why the wearing of masks remains a mandatory measure to prevent transmission. Some people may even be unaware of their status and could continue to spread the virus to other people," he said.
The ministry has urged the public to get frequently tested while continuing to observe preventive measures, including the proper wearing of face masks and hand hygiene. A total of 5,206,385 tests have been carried out countrywide.
The government has eased most curbs but citizens and Rwanda residents have to get fully vaccinated in order to access public places.
Niyingabira underlined that while there was a sharp rise in new infections in December due to the Omicron variant, there were no patients requiring intensive care due to vaccination.
According to the official, there is currently no pressure on health facilities, although the pressure could be on administering more booster doses whose uptake is still low.
Rwanda is among the few countries that have been able to vaccinate more than 60 percent of its population, overcoming the vaccine hesitancy seen on the continent.
More than 7.9 million Rwandans, equivalent to 61 percent of the country's population, were fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as of March 10, according to official data.
The World Health Organization (WHO) in 2021 set a target for countries to vaccinate at least 40 percent of their populations by the end of the year.
Rwanda achieved its target of fully vaccinating 40 percent of its population against COVID-19 as of Dec. 24, 2021, and remains on track to meeting a further global vaccination target of 70 percent inoculation by July 1, 2022. ■
