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LIVE | Ramaphosa hails ‘milestone’ as Covid-19 vaccines are finally rolled out

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A Johnson & Johnson logo is seen in front of a medical syringe and a vial with coronavirus vaccine.
A Johnson & Johnson logo is seen in front of a medical syringe and a vial with coronavirus vaccine.
SOPA Images/Getty

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    53m ago

    FULL COVERAGE | Finally! SA sees historic day as Covid-19 vaccines are rolled out

    It was a historic day in South Africa as the first round of vaccine shots got underway. A large consignment of vaccines from pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson arrived at OR Tambo Airport late on Tuesday night.

    President Cyril Ramaphosa and Health Minister Zweli Mkhize became the first high-profile citizens to take the jab during a visit to the Khayelitsha District Hospital in Cape Town. Ramaphosa labelled the beginning of the vaccine rollout as a “milestone” in the country's Covid-19 fight.

    A total of 80 000 doses of the J&J vaccine has arrived. A further 500 000 doses is expected in a few weeks, while 20 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine is expected at the end of March.

    Here’s a recap of how it went down:

    A plane carrying J&J vaccines arrived at OR Tambo International Airport late on Tuesday night. The consignment was then moved to a facility in Gauteng and was distributed to provinces overnight.

    Ramaphosa and Mkhize took the jab at a Cape Town hospital. The president encouraged the public to be open to the vaccine. The vaccine will be dispatched to 17 sites across the country.

    The Eastern Cape also welcomed its first batch of vaccines at sites in Mthatha and Port Elizabeth. The vaccine was administered to 40 healthcare workers at Bara hospital in Johannesburg. Healthcare workers said they were relieved that the day finally arrived. The vaccine has also been delivered to a site in Pretoria.

    Amid the rollout of the J&J vaccine, experts told us that the government should consider distributing the AstraZeneca vaccine which the country originally procured but decided not to use. Those vaccines will be shared with other African countries.

    Meanwhile, Fin24 reports that new statistics suggest that trade took a knock in December and January because of lockdown regulations tightening as a second wave of Covid-19 hit. A survey said that 66% of traders experienced worse trade conditions this January than January 2020.

    Looking abroad, researchers in the UK will be deliberately infecting a selection of volunteers with the Covid-19 virus as part of a new study. Some 90 volunteers aged between 18 and 30 will be exposed to the virus.

    Stay informed with News24
    In depth | Everything you need to know about phase 1 of the vaccine rollout
    In pictures | From the airport to hospitals - see how day 1 went
    Special report | We remember those who died of Covid-19.
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    Checklist | These are the first symptoms
    Sign up | Like our coverage? Become a subscriber

    - Kerushun Pillay

    Pictured: Zoliswa Gidi-Dyosi, a nurse, was the first person to receive a vaccine shot, at Khayelitsha District Hospital, Cape Town. (GCIS)

    3h ago

    Western Cape has already approached vaccine manufacturers, Winde says

     - The Western Cape health department has already approached pharmaceutical companies in an effort to procure Covid-19 vaccine doses.

     - This was confirmed by Premier Alan Winde during his State of the Province Address on Wednesday.

     - Winde said the procurement process would be made public to prevent corruption.

    READ MORE

    3h ago

    GLOBAL NEWS

    Covid-19 wrap | New virus cases down 16% last week - WHO, lockdown ends in Melbourne and Auckland

     - Mexico surpassed 2 million coronavirus cases while new infections in the United States fell for a fifth week in a row, with the White House increasing its supply of vaccines to states and pharmacies this week.

     - Europe's drugs regulator could issue an opinion by mid-March on whether to approve Johnson & Johnson's vaccine under a speedy review.

     - Denmark registered the more contagious coronavirus variant B.1.1.7, first detected in Britain, in close to half of all positive tests in the second week of February.

    READ FULL WRAP

    4h ago

    ICYMI - WATCH

    President Cyril Ramaphosa and Health Minister Zweli Mkhize address crowd after receiving Covid-19 vaccine jabs.

    4h ago

    ICYMI - WATCH

    Healthcare workers, President Cyril Ramaphosa, and Health Minister Zweli Mkhize among first to receive Covid-19 vaccine.

    5h ago

    Ramaphosa: "And I'd like to say to all the doomsayers, who have been preaching that there's going to be total mayhem and disaster - let's all have hope and faith in our system, in our health workers, and let's give them an opportunity to do what they do best. Because they know how these vaccination processes are going to unfold."

    5h ago

    Ramaphosa: "We are going to be rolling out this vaccine throughout the country, it's already started in a number of health centres. And I think it's going to be flawless, I think it's going to be done effectively."

    Ramaphosa: "And as we get more and more of these vaccines, as the minister brings them in, I think we will be able to vaccinate up to the 40 million South Africans that we should."

    Ramaphosa: "So this is a new era for us, and an era that will mean that, yes, we restore the health of our nation, and we do so with our health system, or through our health system that is robust, that is gaining strength on an ongoing basis."

    5h ago

    Ramaphosa: "I was glad to see that they trained people, there were many people who were trained here. They were earlier trained for the AstraZeneca vaccine and they had to [train] very fast to start training people for the Johnson & Johnson vaccine."

    Ramaphosa: "It does show that our health system is robust, is agile, it's effective and our health workers are able to get up to speed really quickly."

    5h ago

    Ramaphosa: "This day represents a real milestone for us as South Africans, that finally the vaccines are here, and they are being administered."

    Ramaphosa: "And I was rather pleased that there were five people who were vaccinated before me, and they are health workers, and it was a joy to watch them to see whether anything had happened to them, and gladly nothing had happened to them."

    Ramaphosa: "And it means that being vaccinated is a fairly straightforward process."

    5h ago

    Ramaphosa, post-vaccination, now addresses the crowd outside the hospital.

    He relates the story of the build-up to the vaccines arriving in SA late last night, and says they were tracking the aircraft closely up until the time it arrived.

    5h ago

    Nurse Zoliswa Gidi-Dyosi was the first South African to receive the Covid-19 vaccine at the Khayelitsha Day Hospital in Cape Town.

    (PHOTO via Twitter/Zweli Mkhize)

    6h ago

    Ramaphosa has seemingly arrived at the venue to receive his vaccine. An exclamation of "Let the president come to the front" rings out in the room.

    8h ago

    The first batch of 80 000 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine is being prepared for distribution across South Africa with 'immediate effect', according to a statement by the presidency.

    It is expected that most vaccination centres will be ready from today, 17 February 2021, to begin the vaccination programme.

    "To demonstrate our confidence in this vaccine and help allay any fears that people may have, the Minister of Health and I will join the first health care workers to receive the vaccine in Khayelitsha," President Ramaphosa said.

    The first vaccinations will begin at 12:00 at Khayelitsha District Hospital.

    News24 will be broadcasting live. 

    9h ago

    WATCH | Covid-19: Johnson & Johnson vaccine arrives at OR Tambo International Airport

    9h ago

    1 210 new confirmed Covid-19 cases amid vaccine arrival hope

     - Another 1 210 Covid-19 cases have been reported in the country as a new vaccine consignment renews hope of the programme restarting.

     - The number of deaths linked to the virus rose by 219 people.

     - The recovery rate is 93.5%.

    READ MORE

    9h ago

    FOR SUBSCRIBERS

    Covid-19: Latest batch of vaccines set to go directly to EC as health minister says SA may have enough

     - Some SA experts believe the rollout of the AstraZeneca vaccine should still happen, despite its limited protection against moderate disease.

     - On Tuesday, the health department said it is offering the vaccines to the African Union.

     - Zweli Mkhize said enough vaccines for the majority of the country have been procured.

    READ FULL STORY

    13h ago

    A total of 1 494 119 cases have been reported with 1 210 new cases in the past 24 hours. A reported 1 396 951 people have recovered and there are 48 313 reported deaths, 219 in the past day. This means there are an estimated 48 855 active Covid-19 cases.
    View our Covid-19 dashboard here

    16 February 20:58

    SA to receive vaccines tonight

    South Africa is due to receive the first delivery of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine tonight at the OR Tambo International Airport in Gauteng. 

    The vaccine has been approved by South African Health Products Authority. The consignment will be moved to a secure facility in Gauteng before being distributed overnight to the various vaccine centres in all provinces.  

    Due to logistical purposes around the arrival of the vaccines this evening, no media access can be granted. The media, will however, be invited to key vaccination milestone events around the country over the next few weeks. Government remains committed to saving lives and protecting livelihoods.

    All citizens are reminded that adhering to health protocols together with the vaccine remains our best defence against the virus. 

    - GCIS 
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