Zanzibar records 15 COVID-19 deaths

 DAR ES SALAAM, Aug. 11 (Xinhua) -- Tanzania's Zanzibar on Wednesday reported 15 COVID-19 deaths recorded in the past two months.

Nassor Ahmed Mazrui, Zanzibar's Minister of Health, Social Welfare, Elderly, Gender and Children, said a total of 390 COVID-19 cases were recorded in various hospitals in Zanzibar during the same period.

He told a news conference that out of the 390 COVID-19 patients, 112 were Tanzanians and 278 were foreigners, and 207 have fully recovered.

"We need to seriously observe protective guidelines against the pandemic in order to control it from spreading further," he said, adding that people should avoid handshakes and mass gatherings, observe social distancing and wear face masks.

The minister also revealed that a total of 9,350 people have been vaccinated against COVID-19 since June 17 in Zanzibar.

On July 31, Zanzibar received a batch of Sinovac COVID-19 vaccines and syringes donated by China. Zanzibar has a population of about 1.5 million.