COVID-19 pandemic in Vanuatu

Last updated

COVID-19 pandemic in Vanuatu
Disease COVID-19
Virus strain SARS-CoV-2
Location Vanuatu
First outbreak Wuhan, China
Index case Port Vila
Arrival date11 November 2020 [1]
Confirmed cases12,019 [2]
Deaths
14 [2]
Fatality rate0.12%
Vaccinations
  • 176,624 [2] (total vaccinated)
  • 162,250 [2] (fully vaccinated)
  • 366,638 [2] (doses administered)
Government website
https://covid19.gov.vu/

The COVID-19 pandemic in Vanuatu is part of the ongoing worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 ( COVID-19 ) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The virus was confirmed to have reached Vanuatu on 11 November 2020. [1]

Contents

Background

On 12 January 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed that a novel coronavirus was the cause of a respiratory illness in a cluster of people in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, which was reported to the WHO on 31 December 2019. [3] [4]

The case fatality ratio for COVID-19 globally has been much lower than the SARS outbreak between 2002 and 2004, [5] [6] but the transmission rates have been substantially greater, with a consequently more significant total death toll. [7] [5]

Timeline

COVID-19-Pandemie - VU (Vanuatu) - Infizierte (800px).svg
Cases
COVID-19-Pandemie - VU (Vanuatu) - Tote (800px).svg
Deaths

2020

On 16 March 2020, travel restrictions and quarantine measures were put in place for those entering Vanuatu. [8] On 22 March, Vanuatu's health authorities confirmed that tests for a resort worker with a suspected case of coronavirus had returned negative. [9] President Tallis Obed Moses declared a state of emergency in the country on 26 March [10] after a tourist on a cruise ship visiting the island of Aneityum had tested positive for the virus, prompting a lockdown on the island. Blood samples from locals on the island were also sent to New Caledonia for testing. [10]

The first asymptomatic case, that of a man who had traveled to the islands from the United States via Sydney and Auckland was confirmed on 11 November. He had arrived in Vanuatu on 4 November and underwent managed isolation and quarantine with no symptoms, and tested positive on 10 November. [1] On 2 December, it was confirmed that the man had since tested negative. [11]

2021

On 6 March 2021, Prime Minister Bob Loughman announced two new COVID-19 cases, [12] and by 23 March, there were a total of 3 cases, with 2 being active cases and 1 being a recovery. [13] A new positive case was confirmed on 19 April, the body of a Filipino sailor who had been working aboard a British-flagged tanker had washed up on the shores of Port Vila, with the sailor testing positive for COVID-19 post-mortem. [14]

On 19 May, Vanuatu received 24,000 doses of the Oxford–AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine. [15]

No new cases were reported in the country until late October, when on 24 October, two people who had arrived in Port Vila from Nouméa, New Caledonia tested positive while in quarantine, two days after their arrival. [16] By the end of 2021, there were 7 total cases in Vanuatu, with no active cases, 6 recoveries, and 1 death. [13]

2022 – 2023

By the end of March 2022, there had been 2,633 cases, with 1,663 active cases, 970 recoveries, and 1 death. By 4 April, there were two new deaths, a 22 year old and a 5 year old, who were the first Ni-Vanuatu citizens to die from COVID-19. [17] The total number of cases crossed over 10,000 on 4 June. [18]

As the COVID-19 situation plateaued globally and governments began lifting restrictions, the Vanuatu government lifted requirements of a negative COVID-19 test as well as vaccination against COVID-19 for incoming travellers on 12 September. [19] By the end of the year, there were a total of 11,982 cases, with 14 deaths. [18]

On 20 April 2023, the official case tally reached 12,005 cases and 14 deaths in Vanuatu, with the majority being in the capital, Port Vila. No new cases or deaths were recorded for the remainder of 2023, with the government stopping to count anymore by 30 January, 2024. [18]

Statistics

New cases per day

Deaths per day

Cases by provinces

Positives cases by province (as of 22 June 2022)
ProvinceCasesRecoveredDeathsReferences
Malampa 64140 [20]
Penama 1,2331,1760 [21]
Shefa 5,3465,33811 [22]
Sanma 2,3172,3173
Tafea 1,3151,2890 [23]
Torba 6836540
6/610,95610,77814

Vaccination

On 2 June 2021, Vanuatu launched its COVID-19 vaccine roll-out campaign. On 23 June 2021, President Tallis Obed Moses and First Lady Estella Moses Tallis publicly received their first doses of the Oxford–AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine as part of the vaccination campaign. [24]

On 27 July 2021, 20,000 AstraZeneca vaccines were received in Vanuatu through a bilateral arrangement between the governments of the Republic of Vanuatu and Australia, a further 24,000 AstraZeneca doses have been provided by COVAX, and 20,000 Sinopharm BIBP vaccine doses received from the Chinese Government. [25]

The total number of COVID-19 vaccine doses administered between 2 June 2021 and 8 August 2021 was 31,028. Health workers, front line workers (e.g. border workers, quarantine facility staff, public transport drivers), the elderly (55 and over), and 4,314 people aged 35 years and over with known underlying medical conditions were given priority. Those who have received both of the two recommended doses of either Sinopharm or AstraZeneca vaccines are considered fully vaccinated. By 8 August, 1,721 people in Vanuatu were considered fully vaccinated, making up 0.6% of the country's total population. [25]

By 20 March 2022, 75% of Ni-Vanuatu adults had received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, with 69% of those people being fully vaccinated. [26] By 24 April, that figure had reached 80% of Ni-Vanuatu adults, with 91% of those people being fully vaccinated. [27]

See also

Notes

    References

    1. 1 2 3 "Vanuatu has its first Covid-19 case". Radio New Zealand . 11 November 2020. Archived from the original on 11 November 2020. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
    2. 1 2 3 4 5 Mathieu, Edouard; Ritchie, Hannah; Rodés-Guirao, Lucas; Appel, Cameron; Giattino, Charlie; Hasell, Joe; Macdonald, Bobbie; Dattani, Saloni; Beltekian, Diana; Ortiz-Ospina, Esteban; Roser, Max (2020–2024). "Coronavirus Pandemic (COVID-19)". Our World in Data . Retrieved 15 October 2025.
    3. ↑ Elsevier. "Novel Coronavirus Information Center". Elsevier Connect. Archived from the original on 30 January 2020. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
    4. ↑ Reynolds, Matt (4 March 2020). "What is coronavirus and how close is it to becoming a pandemic?". Wired UK. ISSN   1357-0978. Archived from the original on 5 March 2020. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
    5. 1 2 "Crunching the numbers for coronavirus". Imperial News. 13 March 2020. Archived from the original on 19 March 2020. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
    6. ↑ "High consequence infectious diseases (HCID); Guidance and information about high consequence infectious diseases and their management in England". GOV.UK. Archived from the original on 3 March 2020. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
    7. ↑ "World Federation Of Societies of Anaesthesiologists – Coronavirus". www.wfsahq.org. Archived from the original on 12 March 2020. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
    8. ↑ "Pacific nations take further measures against coronavirus". Radio New Zealand . 16 March 2020. Archived from the original on 28 October 2020. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
    9. ↑ "Covid-19 tests in Samoa, Vanuatu come back negative". Radio New Zealand . 22 March 2020. Archived from the original on 24 March 2020. Retrieved 24 March 2020.
    10. 1 2 "Vanuatu declares State of Emergency over Covid-19". Radio New Zealand . 26 March 2020. Archived from the original on 1 August 2020. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
    11. ↑ "Vanuatu PM declares Covid contained". RNZ . 2 December 2020. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
    12. ↑ "Vanuatu has two more Covid-19 cases in quarantine". RNZ . 6 March 2021. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
    13. 1 2 "Vanuatu". Worldometer. Retrieved 23 October 2025.
    14. ↑ "Vanuatu's main island halts outward travel after Covid discovery". RNZ . 18 April 2021. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
    15. ↑ "Vanuatu receives 24,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines through the COVAX Facility". www.who.int. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
    16. ↑ "Vanuatu Ministry of Health COVID-19 Updates - COVID-19 cases in quarantine: Alert Level 1". covid19.gov.vu. Retrieved 1 November 2021.
    17. ↑ "Vanuatu Situation Report #84 Issued 30 March - Covering 29-30 March 2022". Ministry of Health COVID-19 Updates. 31 March 2022. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
    18. 1 2 3 "Interactive COVID-19 map for Vanuatu". Ministry of Health COVID-19 Updates. Retrieved 24 October 2022.
    19. ↑ "Travellers to Vanuatu". Ministry of Health COVID-19 Updates. 21 March 2020. Retrieved 24 October 2025.
    20. ↑ "Update on COVID-19 situation in Vanuatu, as of 22 June 2022". www.facebook.com. 22 June 2022. Retrieved 22 June 2022.
    21. ↑ "Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)Vanuatu Situation Report #67 Issue" (PDF). covid19.gov.vu. 24 April 2022.
    22. ↑ "Update on COVID-19 situation in Vanuatu, as of 9 March 2022 (12pm midday)". www.facebook.com. 9 March 2022. Retrieved 9 March 2022.
    23. ↑ "Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) Vanuatu Situation Report #119 Issued 04 May-Covering 03-04 May 2022" (PDF). covid19.gov.vu. 4 May 2022. Retrieved 7 May 2022.
    24. ↑ Roberts, Anita (19 May 2018). "Ban Plastics". Vanuatu Daily Post . Archived from the original on 24 June 2021. Retrieved 27 September 2025.
    25. 1 2 "Vanuatu Situation Report #47 – 10 August 2021" (PDF). Ministry of Health. 10 August 2021. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
    26. ↑ "Vanuatu COVID-19 Vaccine Roll-Out". Ministry of Health COVID-19 Updates. 20 March 2022. Retrieved 25 March 2022.
    27. ↑ "Vanuatu COVID-19 Vaccine Rollout". Vanuatu Ministry of Health COVID-19 Updayes. 25 April 2022. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
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