At last, good news on vaccine front

Health Minister Zweli Mkhize’s announcement yesterday that we are on track to start the next phase of vaccinations for people who are over the age of 60 early next week is encouraging. The next phase is long overdue. With whispers of a third wave of Covid-19 infections on our doorstep, and months and months of inactivity on the vaccine roll-out plan, many had lost faith in achieving herd community. Government’s initial projected figures of the vaccine roll-out have been way off. Lack of detail in the acquiring, planning and distributing of the vaccines to the nation has done little to win over our trust in the midst of the pandemic.

But the next phase was given a boost yesterday when Mkhize’s office confirmed people who registered to receive the vaccine “will soon receive a message to schedule their appointments and will be given advance notice”, with the scheduling function being concluded on the back end of the electronic vaccination data system.

The Pfizer vaccine will be distributed to the provinces today and tomorrow, and vaccines could be administered as early as Monday.

Mkhize confirmed “we will start small”, with the hope the roll-out could be at full strength by the end of August and September.

We remain cautiously optimistic, but any vaccine roll-out news is good news.