Talk about a new year present – Kansanshi Mine has announced that they have stepped up efforts to compel all its employees to get fully vaccinated against COVID-19, failure to which their access to the company’s premises will be restricted from New Year’s Day.
In a memorandum seen by the Zambian Business Times, – ZBT issued to all of Kansanshi’s employees recently, Kansanshi general manager, Anthony Mukutuma, called on workers to get fully vaccinated or at least be in receipt of one jab to prevent the spread of the deadly COVID-19.
In recent days, a more dangerous strain of the virus, dubbed the Omicron, was announced in South Africa, triggering an immediate global response to ban travel of all passengers who passed through that country, among five other countries in the SADC region.
The United Kingdom is among the leading economies to have quickly announced mandatory measures to restrict arrivals from the SADC region, including Zambia, which has just been placed on the ‘Red List’ of countries.
This means that passengers arriving in the UK from the SADC region will have to compulsorily quarantine for between 10 and 14 days at a facility in the UK before being admitted to that country, and at their own cost.
“You will all be aware that Kansanshi Mine is currently enjoying a respite from the effects of the COVID-19 virus. However, evidence suggests that this will not continue indefinitely and that a fourth wave of infections could reasonably be expected to evolve in the coming weeks and months. I intend to prepare for this eventuality. Research shows that the COVID-19 vaccine is the best means of doing this, the efficacy of which is now irrefutable,” wrote Mukutuma.
“From January 1, 2022, the following changes will come into effect: Any employee who is unvaccinated (not received at least one jab) and is away from work for more than 72 hours will be required to present a negative PCR test certificate before returning to work – at their own cost. Entry inside the Kansanshi Gold Club clubhouse, the KGE Gymnasium and Swimming Pool and site canteens (for sit–down meals), will be restricted to those individuals who have been vaccinated against COVID-19 (received at least one jab); working in shared spaces/offices will be restricted to employees that are vaccinated (received at least one jab).”
Health officials in Zambia have stepped up efforts to get more people vaccinated, with the arrival of more jabs, the most recent being the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines delivered from the United States under the COVAX facility.
But uptake remains sluggish with a vaccination rate of only seven per cent so far, nationally, and various citizens ignoring mask mandates. Conspiracy theories and a deep seated mistrust of western driven drive is rife among most Africans and Zambia is no exception.
