31 January 2021 - 17:04 By Zweli Mkhize We ought not forget these arduous verses for they help us appreciate the necessity of what is about to come. Image: Twitter: @DrZweliMkhize
If one were to write a tome on SA’s enduring battle against the Covid-19 pandemic, Monday would mark a new chapter one of anticipation, hope and possibility.
This chapter would mark the start of our climax, after many pages charting the country’s 11-month campaign to best prevent the spread of infection and save lives.
Those pages would have drawn the tears of many a health-care worker who watched their patients take their last breath; described the quiet desperation of a breadwinner who lost his or her job in an economy shrunken by necessary, life-saving restrictions; and painted pictures of silent streets.
South Africa gets surprise batch of 20 million COVID-19 vaccines
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South Africa will receive another 20 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine manufactured by Pfizer, according to a report by
Health Minister Zweli Mkhize confirmed to the publication that these vaccines had been secured by the government and that only final agreements on delivery details and exact pricing were outstanding.
“We are negotiating, largely with Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson, but some of it is coming via the African Vaccine Acquisition Task Team and Covax,” Mkhize said.
“We are reasonably comfortable that what we have paid for, signed for and are negotiating for will cover the numbers that we are looking to vaccinate,” he said.
How you will register for a COVID-19 vaccine in South Africa
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South Africans who wish to receive a COVID-19 vaccine will be required to register on the government’s upcoming online platform called the Electronic Vaccine Data System (EVDS).
The Department of Health (DOH) yesterday announced the system would be used to capture all relevant data associated with the administration of the vaccine in South Africa.
The first consignment of 1 million COVID-19 vaccines, developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University, is due to arrive in the country on 1 February.
DOH Acting Chief Operating Officer (COO) Milani Wolmarans explained the EVDS is linked to supply chain management to ensure that there are enough doses to inoculate the vaccinees when they arrive at the local vaccination service site.
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