SA’s first batch of COVID-19 vaccines expected to arrive

There is much anticipation in the country as the first shipment of one million AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines is expected to land on local shores on Monday, 01 February 2021.

The shipment left Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai on Sunday and will go through Dubai before finally touching down at OR Tambo International Airport. An additional 500 000 COVID-19 AstraZeneca vaccines will only be expected later in February.

The first shipment of 1 million doses of the #OxfordAstraZeneca vaccine from the @SerumInstIndia is on the way to @ortambo_int
The shipment left the 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

While government has clarified that the COVID-19 vaccine rollout will be in three phases, there have been concerns, particularly from opposition parties and civil society as to whether they can pull it off.

However the doses will not be administered immediately after their arrival and the first jabs will likely only be received after two weeks. They will first have to undergo a mandated quarantine period, as well as quality assurance checks.

South Africa’s estimated 1.25 million healthcare workers will receive the COVID-19 jabs first. In addition, the country reached an agreement with the COVAX Facility to secure vaccines to immunise 10% of the population.

Phase 1 will focus on the country’s healthcare workers, while Phase 2 will focus on essential workers, persons in congregate settings, persons over the age of 60 and persons with co-morbidities who are over the age of 18.

Phase 3 will target approximately 22 500 000 South Africans, and will be administered to persons older than 18 years of age.

Ramaphosa and Mabuza to officially receive first consignment of COVID-19 vaccine

President Cyril Ramaphosa and Deputy President David Mabuza, who chairs the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Vaccines, will together officially receive the country’s first consignment of COVID-19 vaccines. According to the Presidency, the event will get underway at 15:00, which presumably means the vaccines will arrive in the afternoon.

They be joined by Minister of Health Dr Zweli Mkhize, Acting Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, High Commissioner of the Republic of India His Excellency Jaideep Sarkar and Dr Morena Makhoana, Chief Executive Officer of Biovac.

According to the Presidency, Biovac, a bio-pharmaceutical company, will play an important role in the quality assurance, warehousing and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines.

Mkhize has described the arrival of the COVID-19 vaccines as an achievement for government, particularly given the short time frame.

“As a country, for us to expect our first consignment of the vaccines less than a year after the first case of COVID-19 was recorded is a massive achievement of unprecedented proportions,” he said.

Government is aiming at having aims 67% of the population receiving the jab by the end of the year in order to achieve herd immunity.