A thousand vaccination centers will be installed near polling stations Monday, November 1 in South Africa, where residents are being called to ballot for local elections, the Minister of Health announced on Friday (October 29).
Read alsoCovid-19: South Africa vaccines from 12 years old
The Electoral Commission of the country most affected on the continent by the coronavirus pandemic had tried to postpone the municipal elections because of the Covid-19 but the Constitutional Court maintained the vote on November 1. Some 1,000 vaccination sites will be set up near some of the country's 23,000 polling stations, targeting neighborhoods where vaccination uptake is low.
"
We hope that this device will allow
" those who made the trip to vote "
to be vaccinated at the same time,
" Health Minister Joe Phaahla told reporters.
Only some 12 million South Africans are fully immunized, or 30% of the country's adult population.
The country, which has recorded more than 2.92 million cases since the start of the pandemic, including 89,100 deaths, hopes to reach a rate of 40% of the adult population vaccinated by the end of November.
Read also Covid-19: South Africa is working on the continent's first mRNA vaccine
The World Health Organization (WHO) warned Thursday that unless there is a significant acceleration, only five African countries (Seychelles, Mauritius, Morocco, Tunisia, Cape Verde) will reach the global target of 40% of vaccinated populations. at the end of the year.
Already struggling, the vaccination campaign against Covid-19 in Africa also risks suffering from a shortage of syringes, warned the WHO.
