Johannesburg, South Africa – South Africa, the continent’s worst-hit country by COVID, is expected to receive its first batch of coronavirus vaccines on Monday.
First scheduled for the end of January, the first million sightings of the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine issued in India will be used to protect healthcare workers over the next three months. ahead. The second batch of 500,000 jobs is expected to arrive later in February.
Despite criticism from opposition parties and medical experts that the vaccine procurement process has taken too long, Health Minister Zweli Mkhize has called the vaccines from the Serum Institute of India “a huge achievement of rations never seen before ”.
Once the shipment has undergone quality checks, which are set to take between 10 and 14 days, the country will begin the long-awaited three-stage vaccination campaign. Following the inclusion of front-line health care workers, other high-risk groups such as the elderly, people with comorbidities and essential workers such as minibus drivers, police and teachers are going to get the shot. The third level is aimed at everyone else over the age of 18.
The first load of 1 million doses of the #OxfordAstraZeneca vaccine from @SerumInstIndia on the way to @ortambo_int
The passenger left Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai today and will arrive in South Africa on 1 February 2021.# COVID19 pic.twitter.com/lTw1EtGi0d– South African Government (@GovernmentZA) January 31, 2021
Jabs’ revenues come a month after the United Kingdom launched its first vaccine developed by Oxford University and the pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca, and about two months after the UK and the UK United States to use the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.
Responding to allegations that the delay was caused by the South African government starting talks too late, National Health Department Deputy Director General Dr Anban Pillay told Al Jazeera: “We could not get a vaccine without knowing it. that it is effective, safe and when it would be delivered. This information was only available in December for some vaccines. We had to wait to receive this information before making a financial commitment. ”
Under his agreement, South Africa pays $ 5.25 per bullet, $ 2 more than it costs when the same vaccine comes within the contract that the African Union (AU) has received. for African countries.
Professor Barry Schoeb, who chairs the Ministerial Advisory Committee (MAC) on COVID-19, said that South Africa prioritized the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine as “this is the one available in the immediately ”.
Authorities aim to vaccinate 40 million South Africans by the end of 2021, or 65 percent of the population nearly 60 million. “But effectiveness depends on a number of factors,” Mkhize acknowledged in a public announcement about the vaccine last week, citing the uncertainty surrounding whether South Africa is going. to receive the prescribed doses.
Although he promised that the government would do its best to get as many vaccines as possible, “many other countries are not getting the products they are currently ordering”, the minister warned.
According to official sources, 21 million views of the Pfizer (12 million) and Johnson & Johnson (nine million) vaccines were obtained through collection programs such as the COVAX scheme with support from the World Health Organization and the AU, as well as two contracts. side-by-side with suppliers. Meanwhile, Mkhize told a Sunday newspaper that another 20 million views had been ordered by Pfizer, bringing South Africa’s expected supply to more than 40 million doses.
“These vaccines are secure and waiting for manufacturers to submit final agreements with details of delivery dates and exact amounts,” Mkhize told the Sunday Times.
South Africa is the largest African country affected by the pandemic, accounting for nearly 1.5 million confirmed cases and nearly 44,000 associated deaths. In January, new daily infections peaked at more than 20,000, most of which could be traced back to a new weight announced last year.
The strong 501Y.V2 variant is thought to be 50 percent more potent than previous variants, while some studies have shown it to be relatively more resistant to the existing vaccines.
The effectiveness of the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine against it is currently being investigated, and results are expected in the coming days.
#ListenToTheExperts
Dr Barry Schoub explains the # COVID19 vaccine microchip myth. pic.twitter.com/cvHCqtFm9c– Department of Health: COVID-19 (@ COVID_19_ZA) January 30, 2021
Meanwhile, the government has launched a social media campaign – using hashtags such as #VacciNation and #ListenToTheExperts – to spread myths and rumors about COVID-19 and widely circulated vaccines. out.
“We are going to make sure that there is enough information available with the communities to dispel the doubts about the vaccines,” Mkhize said.
The Department of Health is currently conducting a study to find out the level of vaccine information among health care workers, as some appear to be afraid of getting it.
“People are scared. They’re talking about 5G, triple 6 and microchips, ”said a nurse working at a clinic near central Johannesburg. According to the nurse, the online training of nurses will start on Monday.
“Healthcare workers have not been given enough information about the vaccine,” said Sibongiseni Delihlaso, of the South African Democratic Nursing Agency.
“They are the ones driving this on the ground. How are these people going to convince patients to get the vaccine if they are unsure? ”