Guatemala City, November 10th. A group of health experts unveiled a report Thursday on the “institutional barriers” of the vaccination system in Guatemala, highlighting that only 30 out of 360 municipalities in the country have achieved coverage of 70% of adults over the age of 50.
“Urban areas were a priority and there was no vaccination plan designed for rural communities,” public health analyst Karin Slowing said during the presentation of a report on the Guatemalan Ministry of Health’s institutional barriers to vaccination against covid. -19, which was created by the non-governmental organization Data Laboratory.
The report highlights that vaccination was a priority in 60 predominantly urban municipalities with predominantly Ladin populations and lower poverty rates.
While 102 municipalities, mostly rural and with a predominantly indigenous population, have not achieved the vaccination of 70% of the population over 50, the study highlights.
The analysis indicates that the Ministry of Health has formed alliances with private companies in Guatemala City for vaccination, but the same model cannot be replicated in rural areas of the country.
“One of the main obstacles was technology and communication,” Slowing explained, noting that in the departments (provinces) with less Internet access, such as Alta Verapaz, Quiché and Huehuetenango, located in the northwest of the country, less than 20% of the population received a second dose of the vaccine.
Furthermore, the report criticizes the fact that Guatemala had an “anomalous process” in purchasing Russian Sputnik-branded vaccines in March 2021, as only 8 of the 16 million doses purchased between March and October 2021 were delivered on time. . year.
“There was a delay in delivery and unfortunately the expiration of many doses was also reported,” Slowing explained.
In February 2022, the Guatemalan Ministry of Health announced that more than one million Sputnik vaccines had expired, costing $ 12 million.
Until last October 20, about 6.97 million people have received the complete vaccination program in Guatemala, this represents 40% of the total population of the Central American country, according to official data.
From March 2020 to today, Guatemala has detected more than one million cases and as of November 9, 19,913 deaths from coronavirus have been recorded.
