So where were all the waiting people now? In contrast to the earlier vaccines, the vaccines for 2 - 29 year olds are from Cuba and Russia and were shipped in batches of a million or more doses that don’t require storage in sub-zero temperatures, so the Ministry of Health made them available countrywide at 1,087 health centers simultaneously. My daughters may have been the first to arrive and get the COVID vaccine at our health center that day, but there was a steady stream of children and young people behind them and also at five other health centers in our city.
That first morning, Nicaragua vaccinated 93,438 people. By 7 PM Friday, Nicaragua had applied at least one dose of various donated COVID vaccines to 26% of the target 2 - 29 year-old population, 54% of pregnant women and 62% of over-30s. This is the equivalent of 43% of the total population, the majority of those vaccines applied in the past 6 weeks. This feat is not surprising given Nicaragua’s experience organizing annual vaccination campaigns and its 98% overall vaccination rate, but is still impressive for any country.
Yet, what were the international headlines this week? (If I sound angry here, it’s because I actually really am angry, so bear with me…) “Thousands of Nicaraguans cross border into Honduras to be vaccinated.” Articles claimed that lack of vaccines in Nicaragua was pushing hundreds of Nicaraguans each day to get vaccinated in Honduras.
It is true that Nicaraguans were going to Honduras to be vaccinated – paying hundreds of dollars for taxis and boatmen to take them undocumented across the river, only to have to pay again in a few weeks when they need their second dose – but given the massive success of this week’s vaccinations, it certainly wasn’t due to lack of vaccine in Nicaragua. So why were they risking an illegal crossing to receive Pfizer and Moderna vaccines?
1) The same Monday that Nicaragua began vaccinating children and young people, the United States announced that it would no longer allow foreigners to visit the U.S. unless they are vaccinated with U.S.-approved vaccines – which do not include Russian or Cuban-developed vaccines. Anyone with hopes of traveling to the U.S. (and with the resources to do so) zipped up to the border for a U.S.-approved shot.
2) The Honduran government, undoubtedly acting on orders from the U.S., set aside 100,000 doses of the U.S.-donated Pfizer and Moderna vaccine at immigration posts along the border and announced their intention to vaccinate Nicaraguans, enticing people to make the trek.
3) A certain population of Nicaraguans has been manipulated into thinking that the Russian and Cuban vaccines are unsafe. Contributing to this is the fact that, although Russia registered Sputnik V as the world’s first COVID-19 vaccine in August 2020, the World Health Organization still hasn’t approved it, and has no clear timeline to do so. This is particularly baffling considering Sputnik V is 91.6% effective – higher than AstraZeneca or J&J. The one-dose Sputnik Light currently being applied in Nicaragua is 70% effective against the Delta variant, 83% effective against infection, 94% effective against hospitalization and can be used as a booster for other vaccines.
Due to the 60 year economic embargo against it, Cuba has a long history of developing its own vaccines and the Soberana 2 and Abdala being applied in Nicaragua are 90% effective against COVID-19; 100% of Cuba’s eligible population has had at least one dose, and by the end of November Cuba expects to have 90% of its population fully vaccinated. In mid-September, Cuba began seeking approval from WHO for its vaccines, but has not yet made headway. All the Russian and Cuban vaccines can be stored in a regular refrigerator, making it more accessible for poorer countries without subzero storage conditions. Given clear evidence of the safety and effectiveness of the Russian and Cuban vaccines, the lack of emergency approval for them is perplexing… unless, of course, it’s politically motivated.
The U.S. manipulation machine is hard at work. Why? This coming Sunday, the 7th of November, Nicaragua is holding general elections…and the U.S. is knee-deep meddling in these elections in an attempt to keep the ruling FSLN party from winning: the U.S. ambassador to Nicaragua has been accused of interference with Nicaragua’s internal democratic process, and the U.S. has been announcing for months that the elections are a “sham.”
So this week’s “vaccine diplomacy” – cruelly manipulating a tragic pandemic for its own political ends – is just the latest in the U.S.’s last-ditch effort to keep Nicaraguans from choosing their own President. Another shameful example of this is that although the U.S. donated COVID vaccines to every other country in Central America months ago, it only donated vaccines to Nicaragua this week, 10 days out from the election.
To say that U.S. vaccine maneuverings are hypocritical is an understatement. Nicaragua’s vaccinations this week far surpass anything the giant to the north has been able to accomplish. In terms of population, Nicaragua’s vaccinations this past Monday morning would be the equivalent of the United States vaccinating 4.7 million people in a few hours. Nicaragua has gone from 8% of the population partially vaccinated to 43% in just six weeks; in comparison, after more than 10 months of plentiful free vaccines, only 66% of the U.S. population is even partially vaccinated, and 0% of its 2-11 year old children are vaccinated. It also bears mentioning that the U.S. has thrown out more than 15 million vaccine doses – enough to vaccinate every Nicaraguan twice – and is offering a third shot while people around the world still clamor for a first dose.
But that doesn’t stop the U.S. from manipulating Nicaraguans into crossing the border for a “better” vaccine.
The good news is that despite U.S. machinations, Nicaragua is proceeding with its vaccination campaign, expecting to have more than half of its target population vaccinated before next Sunday’s elections, and 90% before year’s end. Nicaragua is also the only country in Central America to begin producing COVID-19 vaccine, with doses of Russian COVI-VAC expected to be offered as booster shots to Nicaragua’s population in early 2022 and exports to Latin America to begin later in the year.
And, despite the U.S.’s best efforts, Nicaraguans will participate in their exemplary democratic process next Sunday. It is expected that at least 75% of those over 16 will vote, about 3.35 million people. By comparison, in the U.S., less than 80% of eligible citizens are even registered to vote, and record voting in 2020 had just 66% of registered voters casting a ballot.
Nicaragua once again shows that it compares favorably to the U.S., both in COVID-19 vaccinations and democracy, earning the giant’s ire by continuing to be the threat of a good example.