Morocco Expands COVID Vaccination to Teens, Sparking Parental Concerns

Following the resurgence of Covid-19 cases, Morocco had, on August 31, expanded the vaccination campaign to children aged between 12 and 17 years old. This announcement has caused concern among parents. "As soon as the vaccination campaign was announced, my office was inundated with appointment requests. Parents want a medical opinion before taking their children to get vaccinated. I was receiving and am still receiving more than fifteen mothers a day. Each time, I had to explain to the families the usefulness of the vaccine and raise awareness of the importance of getting vaccinated," confides Dr. Berragueb, a pediatrician in Casablanca, to La Vie éco.

Dr Moulay Said Afif, president of the National Federation of Health, reassures about the importance and effectiveness of vaccination. "Vaccination has helped reduce the infant mortality rate and also, for many years now, eradicate several childhood diseases. Thus, for example, we have not recorded any diphtheria since 1990, no polio since 1987. The anti-Covid vaccine is a vaccine like the others and will protect children and progress towards collective immunity," he assures.

Not all parents are reluctant to have their children vaccinated. According to the latest official data, they number 646,228 of these students who have been vaccinated since the start of the campaign: 365,214 vaccinated with Pfizer-BioNTech and 281,014 with Sinopharm. "Very few side effects have been reported and even when they appeared they were without any seriousness, specifies Dr Afif. We noted a few cases of vasovagal shock without gravity, fever or even pain at the injection site. It should be noted that these are side effects identical to those that may appear following all other vaccines".

Monday, the start of the school year has been postponed again. This time, to October 1st. This postponement also worries parents, especially those who have already paid the first term tuition fees. "How will the schools proceed?, wonders a parent. We are afraid of surprises in October." Others are wondering about the care of children in the coming days: how to occupy them. Some fear repercussions on the programs. "That was the case last year already, so will we have to face the same situation again this year!", questions a mother.