Safari Rally Kenya organizers believe the vaccination campaign for competitors and officials will go a long way in bolstering the much-needed confidence of visiting teams.
Safari CEO Phineas Kimathi remarked that adherence to the Ministry of Health protocols and those set by Appendix S (FIA's Covid-19 Code of Conduct) will mitigate the risks of transmissions that may arise during the staging of the ARC Equator Rally later this month and WRC Safari Rally in June.
In line with Appendix S, officials and competitors got their initial Covid-19 jab well in time for the upcoming two events.
The exercise facilitated by the Ministry of Health and coordinated by the Ministry of Sports took place outside the WRC Safari Rally secretariat at Moi Stadium, Kasarani, where several officials including stage commanders, controllers, HODs, a group of the sports media personalities, and KMSF Competition Licence Holders were vaccinated for COVID-19.
Among senior officials who got vaccinated in the exercise included Safari's chief safety officer, Noriss Ongalo, clerk of the course Gurvir Bhabra, Service Park manager Anthony Gatei, and media director, Peter Njenga.
Kimathi said: "The vaccination has kicked off very well. First and foremost, I would like to thank the Cabinet Secretary for Sports, Culture, and Heritage, Ambassador Amina Mohammed, who has coordinated this exercise from her office and personally took the initiative to launch the campaign yesterday (Thursday).
"Today (Friday) we are here vaccinating all officials of the Safari Rally. As you know, the ARC Equator Rally is coming up in two and half weeks and it will act as a dry run of the WRC Safari Rally Kenya which returns to the global series after a 19 years hiatus. So we are quite excited about this exercise."
CS Amina was represented by Rose Wachuka, policy advisor and Chief of Staff Office of the Cabinet Secretary. Wacuka on her part said: "This exercise began yesterday (Thursday) and it is intended to keep the athletes safe as well as make sure they get the necessary Covid-19 protection because a lot of international organizers are insisting on vacations."
Ongalo said: "By running this initial exercise, we want to ensure that our guests feel safe and are coming into an environment where the necessary steps have been taken to mitigate risks of transmission. We also have to ensure our team is ready and healthy enough to undertake their responsibilities on Safari."
