South Africans aged 50 and above will be able to register for the Covid-19 vaccine from July, acting Health Minister, Mmamoloko Kubayi-Ngubane said on Friday.
“From the 1st of July 2021, we will open registrations for all citizens between [the] ages of 50 years and above. We will also schedule those vaccinations to begin on the 15th of July,” Kubayi-Ngubane said.
She said that government was worried about the decrease in the demand for vaccine for people aged 60 and over.
“As a group which is most at risk, we are worried about the decrease in the demand of vaccines in this group and we cannot afford to leave them behind,” Kubayi-Ngubane said.
“We understand that this is as a result of high vaccine hesitancy and difficulties of accessing the technology as well the vaccination centres that are not easily accessible.”
Western Cape Premier Alan Winde has said that the opening up of vaccines to other age groups is vital to ensure that the country’s vaccine efforts do not stall.
“There is no reason why this shouldn’t happen already, while vaccinations of those over 60 continue,” he said.
“I am worried we are leaving registration to the last minute, and we should rather be getting as many people registered now so that we can have a seamless change to the next phase – without any delays.”
Winde said he would continue to make these arguments in his engagement with the national government. “We must ensure we are ready for the next phase as soon as possible.”