A viral Facebook post claims that vaccinations against the new coronavirus started in Senegal in early April and that seven children who received them died.

Verdict: False

No children died after being administered coronavirus vaccines in Senegal. There do not appear to be any clinical trials for potential vaccines against the new virus underway in the country at this time.

Fact Check:

At the time of publication, Senegal has reported more than 730 cases of coronavirus and 9 deaths, according to the Johns Hopkins University Coronavirus Resource Center. (RELATED: Do Blood Donors Automatically Get Tested For Coronavirus?)

A viral Facebook post falsely alleges that seven Senegalese children died on April 8 after receiving vaccinations against the new coronavirus, despite a spokeswoman for Senegal’s health ministry confirming to AFP Fact Check that the claim was “fake news.” No clinical trials for coronavirus vaccines appear to be currently underway in Senegal or any other African country, according to the scientific journal Nature.

The claim stems from a video with doctored audio about a man being arrested in the capital city of Dakar for administering vaccines that started circulating online in late March. Witnesses told state-owned news outlet France 24 that while the man was posing as an official from the health ministry and warning people about the virus, he was actually just selling cosmetics, according to Reuters. No children received vaccines or died during the incident.

Drugmakers are racing to develop effective treatments and vaccines for the new coronavirus, with some having already moved to human trials, according to CBS News.