South Africa’s COVID-19 vaccination began on Wednesday with the President Cyril Ramaphosa taking the first shot. Health workers are expected to be next in line for the Johnson & Johnson vaccine shots.
Minister of Health, Zweli Mkhize was vaccinated afterwards.
South Africa has the highest number of COVID-cases in Africa, as it has recorded more than half of Africa’s total cases.
The nation has abandoned plans to use the Astrazeneca vaccines after clinical trials showed a lack of potency against the South African variant of the virus.
Ramaphosa said the Johnson & Johnson vaccine has been shown in extensive trials to be safe and efficacious and will protect our health care workers from illness and death from COVID-19.
Vaccination with J & J are part of clinical trials set for demonstration of the vaccine’s potency. The research study will involve 500,000 health workers in the country.
Already vaccinated are; Nurse Zoliswa Gidi-Dyosi at Khayelitsha District Hospital in Cape Town, followed by a doctor, a member of the housekeeping staff of the hospital and an administrative clerk.
South Africa is one of Africa’s first countries to receive vaccinations with Rwanda, Morocco and Egypt, being others to have vaccinated their citizens against the virus.
