Vaccination of senior citizens gains momentum in KZN
During a media briefing on Sunday, Zikalala said the province is currently vaccinating 13 000 people per day.
KWAZULU-NATAL premier, Sihle Zikalala, says the province continues to make significant progress with the vaccination of both senior citizens and healthcare workers who could not receive the jab during the first phase of the country’s Covid-19 vaccination rollout.
During a media briefing on Sunday, Zikalala said the province is currently vaccinating 13 000 people per day, while intensifying the vaccination of the elderly and increasing more capacity in rural areas.
“As of Friday, 18 June, we had vaccinated 362 226 senior citizens, as well as 127 health workers. The total number of senior citizens who are currently registered on the Electronic Vaccination Data System (EVDS) currently stands at 501 210,” Zikalala said.
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The premier warned that while the Covid-19 cases in the province are still fluctuating and not yet at a peak, there are worrying signs of what appears to be a sustained increase in the infection rate.
“About a month ago, KwaZulu-Natal was registering an average of 130 to 150 new infections and sometimes the figure would go as low as 70 to 80 cases. However, over the past two weeks or so, the province has been recording more than 500 new cases each day, with only few exceptions, where the number would be around 400,” Zikalala said.
He said KwaZulu-Natal has been extremely fortunate that the infection numbers are still where they are.
“We want to make one thing clear, the fact that our numbers are relatively low should, under no circumstances, mean that we must be complacent,” the Premier warned.
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