‘We Do What We Say’ is more than an aspiration for the Kinsevere team. It’s a central plank of a ‘zero deaths due to Covid’ strategy that has kept employees and their families safe, nearly 20 months into the Coronavirus pandemic as explained below.
MMG Kinsevere stands out for deploying several strategies to stem the spread of Covid. It has to date, maintained mining production and safeguarded employees while the virus has spread across the globe. Importantly, there has been no loss of life from Covid at a time when the Congo’s overall national death toll stands at 1,091* as of 21 October 2021.
What actions have been deployed to fight the spread of the virus to date?
MMG Kinsevere has deployed several measures to help employees access fact-based and credible Covid health information. Vaccinations have been encouraged as a main virus protection defence. However, overcoming vaccine hesitancy remains a major challenge.
The Kinsevere Medical Department plays a central role, implementing strict protocols at the mine, exploration sites and office locations as well as promoting vaccines.
Rapid testing is applied when employees show potential Covid symptoms. Those that test positive are quickly isolated. A PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test is performed to detect the presence of a virus. Any person who is a close contact is traced and then isolated. This means that medical staff can quickly set up a treatment protocol, avoiding further virus transmission.
In September 2021, Kinsevere performed 8,165 antibody tests and 1,219 antigen ones (nasal swab sample). While some cases tested positive, they were subsequently cleared. Since the beginning of the pandemic, Kinsevere had recorded 96 confirmed Covid cases. Pleasingly, employees have now recovered and returned to work.
Workforce challenges and confronting fake news
There were some workforce shortages that occurred as result of Covid isolation protocols for employees. The hiring of temporary workers helped in these situations.
Covid fake news remains a problem in Africa as it circulates across social media and WhatsApp messages. To combat anti-health information MMG Kinsevere set up a COVID-19 forum with credible medical advice from respected bodies including the World Health Organisation and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Covid-19 vaccination awareness is now getting some cut-through. The Kinsevere medical team is overcoming fake news by profiling the strong health of people who have successfully received two vaccine doses. Photos, videos and reports have proved the point: vaccinated people now have better protection from falling seriously ill to the virus. Kinsevere stands out for its pro-health efforts. In a country of 105 million people, only 0.1% of the population is vaccinated.
Next steps and goals for 2022
Looking ahead to 2022, Kinsevere is working hard to encourage more people to receive Covid-19 vaccinations so that they and their families have an additional layer of protection.
*Source: World Health Organisation | https://covid19.who.int/region/afro/country/cd
