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 In a backyard littered with medical equipment, tents are needed to
cope with the overflow.
Democratic Republic of Congo is the least vaccinated country against
COVID-19 in the world. Now a fourth wave of the coronavirus
threatens to put greater pressure on its rickety health system than
at any time during the pandemic.
"We have experienced the three previous waves gradually, but in the
fourth wave cases have jumped overnight," said Francois Kajingulu,
the head of St Joseph. "On Monday we had 5-6 cases and on Saturday
we went straight from 30 to 36."
The increase is part of an Africa-wide surge that saw weekly COVID
cases spike 83% in mid-December, driven by the Delta and Omicron
variants, although deaths remain low, the WHO said.
Congo registered 6,480 new cases in the week of Dec. 13 - more than
double the number hit during its previous record week in June, World
Health Organization data show.
VACCINATION DRIVE
The official infection tally in Congo, which has a young population
and where few people get tested, is still low compared to many
countries. But the low level of inoculations worries health
officials who say that unvaccinated populations increase the risk of
new variants emerging.
Fewer than 300,000 people out of a population of 90 million have
received at least one dose, Reuters data indicates, lower than
anywhere else. Hostile terrain, remote populations, insecurity and
lack of funds have all hobbled vaccine rollouts.
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 The recent surge in cases has
pushed authorities to ramp up inoculations, and
the weekly vaccination rate https://graphics.reuters.com/world-coronavirus-tracker-and-maps/vaccination-rollout-and-access
is at its highest yet. A tented
'Vaccinodrome' has been erected in Kinshasa, whose province has
accounted for the vast majority of Congo's 67,000-plus cases.
Health workers at the centre are vaccinating around 200 people per
day, but that is still below its 300 capacity, said coordinator
Jean-Claude Masumu.
Kinshasa resident Popol Kabasale said the latest wave of infections
had persuaded him to come to the centre for a shot.
"Before we were in the dark," he said after receiving a dose. "COVID
really exists and to protect myself I've come to get the vaccine."
(Writing by Alessandra Prentice; Editing by Edward McAllister and
Gareth Jones)
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