A fifth wave of Covid-19 wave is likely to hit South Africa in winter or much earlier — depending on the variants of concern, Health Minister Dr Joe Phaahla announced over the weekend.
“Only high coverage vaccination will reduce the emergence of more variants (to bring about the fifth wave),” the minister said when he briefed reporters on Friday.
According to the minister, vaccination sites remained open and ready to offer services, including mobile and pop-up sites, to all South Africans to stop the fifth wave.
He once appealed to South Africans to seize the opportunity of protecting themselves and those around them by vaccinating with a Pfizer or Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
“While the fourth wave remains stable — even though we are not completely out of it, while the rate remains above 10% — we know that the virus is still very far from being eliminated,” he told the reporters.
He added: “The only way to get closer to normality safely is if more of us vaccinate — including taking boosters once we qualify.”
Meanwhile, Phaahla announced that the country had now administered over 30 million vaccine doses as of Wednesday night.
“It took longer than we had wished for but it’s a significant milestone,” he said, adding that as of Thursday, government had given 30,100,000 doses to 18,604,643 individuals with at least one jab.
In addition, 1,276,000 vaccine doses, including second shots, have been given to children between the ages of 12 and 17 years of age, he said.
NM/as/APA