Not only have over 80,000 frontline healthcare workers been vaccinated, but South Africa has seen a steady decline in Active Cases for 51 days now!
Johannesburg, South Africa (04 March 2021) – South Africa has exhausted its first batch of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine in two weeks, with 83,570 healthcare workers vaccinated as of Wednesday.
“We are very encouraged that our first target of exhausting the first batch of 80,000 vaccines from Johnson & Johnson in two weeks has been achieved and exceeded.
“We have taken every opportunity to learn from this process and continue to refine the programme in preparation for the rollout to the larger community in the subsequent phases,” said Health Minister, Dr Zweli Mkhize.
The first consignment of the single-dose vaccine arrived in South Africa in February, while the second batch arrived this past weekend.
The Minister announced that 95 more people succumbed to COVID-19 in the last 24 hours. Of these, 30 were reported in Gauteng, 25 in the Western Cape, 19 in the Free State, eight in KwaZulu-Natal, seven in Mpumalanga and five in the Eastern Cape, which pushes the death toll to 50 366.
“We convey our condolences to the loved ones of the departed and thank the healthcare workers who treated the deceased patients,” the Minister said.
Meanwhile, South Africa has seen a steady decline in Active Cases for 51 days now. Over the last 24 hours, 1,447 new coronavirus infections have been identified in the country, which brings our active cases to 31,124 and our recoveries to 1,434,772. We currently have a 96,8% recovery rate in closed cases and are making our way to even more recoveries every single day.
The last time our Active Cases were this low was on the 16th of June 2020!
Here are today’s total numbers:
- Recoveries: 1,434,772 (1,452 more than yesterday)
- Active Cases: 31,124 (100 LESS than yesterday)
- Deaths: 50,366 (95 more than yesterday)
We can also break down the Active Cases further to see where each region stands:
- KwaZulu-Natal: 9,516
- Free State: 6,165
- Western Cape: 5,842
- Gauteng: 2,717
- North West: 2,531
- Northern Cape: 2,035
- Mpumulanga: 1,107
- Limpopo: 938
- Eastern Cape: 273
Our hearts go out to everyone who has tragically lost their lives to this virus, and our thanks go out to all the incredible frontline heroes who are helping us get through this pandemic. Please remember that we still need to be wearing our masks, social distancing and staying safe.