LUSAKA, Zambia

Zambia on Friday said it plans to start procuring Paxlovid, Pfizer’s antiviral therapy to treat COVID-19.

Zambia is the first African state to make such an announcement after the Africa CDC signed a memorandum of understanding with Pfizer a day earlier for countries on the continent to receive Paxlovid supplies.

The pills will be used for “individuals at risk of developing severe COVID-19 disease,” Health Minister Sylvia Masebo said at a press conference in the capital Lusaka.

The minister said 143 new cases were detected in the past day, raising the number of active infections in the country to 1,079.

Despite encouraging vaccination numbers, there has been a slow rise in infections, Masebo added.

“Our national vaccination coverage is now at 42.6%, with close to 4.7 million people fully vaccinated,” she said.