In fact, it has barely gotten out of the starting blocks.
In South Africa, which has the continent’s most robust economy and its biggest coronavirus caseload, just 0.8% of the population is fully vaccinated, according to a worldwide tracker kept by Johns Hopkins University. And hundreds of thousands of the country’s health workers, many of whom come face-to-face with the virus every day, are still waiting for their shots.
In Nigeria, Africa’s biggest country with more than 200 million people, only 0.1% are fully protected. Kenya, with 50 million people, is even lower. Uganda has recalled doses from rural areas because it doesn’t have nearly enough to fight outbreaks in big cities.
CAPE TOWN, South Africa In the global race to vaccinate people against COVID-19, Africa is tragically at the back of the pack. In fact, it has barely gotten out of the starting blocks. In South Africa, which has the continent’s most robust economy and its biggest coronavirus caseload, just 0.8% of the population is…
The inflation rate is 3.3%, the lowest it has been since 2004.
Social grants, including old age and disability grants, increased by only R30 from R1,860 to R1,890 a month.
Trade union federation Cosatu lambasted the increases as meagre, pointing out that this would diminish the buying power of grant recipients.
The Association for the Aged (Tafta) has accused the government of failing to adequately support pensioners. The organisation, which operates care homes throughout Durban and has about 5,500 pensioners in its fold, said it was calling out the government following the “dismal 1.16% increase”.
Recent studies have found 87% of the country’s elderly are using their pension social grants to support their adult children and their grandchildren.