JOHANNESBURG — More than 3.1 million people in Gauteng have been vaccinated against the coronavirus, the provincial health department said on Tuesday.
This comes as 343 more people were infected with the virus, taking the number of positive cases since March last year to more than 904 939.
The number of hospitalised patients remains below 4 000, with 3 712 people currently in hospital. This includes 1 647 people admitted to public hospitals and 2 065 people in private healthcare facilities around the province.
Infections in the province have been on a gradual decline under adjusted level three of the lockdown announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa at the start of August.
The province has surpassed its third wave of the coronavirus, with most new infections currently being reported in KwaZulu-Natal, the Eastern Cape and the Western Cape.
Gauteng health department spokesperson Kwara Kekana said more than 878 338 people have recovered from the virus, while more than 18 690 have succumbed to the virus.
“A total number of 3 712 people are currently hospitalised in the public (1 647) and private (2 065) facilities.
A total of 3 143 150 vaccines have been administered in the province as at August 30, 2021,” said Kekana.
Gauteng Premier David Makhura last week said he was not happy with the number of vaccinations in the province and wanted more people to get their jabs.
The under-35 age group has boosted the government’s mass vaccination drive, while last Tuesday, a pilot programme that will see minibus taxis ferry people aged over 50 to vaccination sites kicked off in parts of Gauteng, the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal.
The pilot is expected to run until September 4, before a decision is taken on whether to roll it out to all the provinces.
The Gauteng provincial government and the SABC announced last week that the public broadcaster’s headquarters in Auckland Park would be used as a pop-up vaccination site from Thursday to Saturday.
Gauteng is allowing walk-ins at vaccination sites, regardless of whether or not people have registered on the Electronic Vaccination Data System.
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