Cape Town - With global efforts directed at getting as many eligible people vaccinated against Covid-19 in the face of emerging variants, the province has reached a milestone by vaccinating over 50% of its eligible adult population.
Around 51.36% or 2 556 131 of adults in the Western Cape have been vaccinated with at least one dose of vaccine.
The provincial Health Department said this was still not near its 70% + target.
The department started seeing a slow increase in people presenting for vaccinations, due to innovations such as pop-up sites, outreaches and its newly launched Vaxi Taxi.
On Monday, Health MEC Nomafrench Mbombo launched the mobile vaccination service, the Vaxi Taxi, at the Bella Moravian Church in Atlantis.
Old Mutual partnered with the Western Cape government and Accelerate Cape Town for the pilot mobile vaccination service for outlying areas, starting in Atlantis.
Mbombo said: “It is also clear that to get more people vaccinated we will need to have a tailor-made approach. With these taxis, we will be able to reach out to where people are and vaccinate as many people as possible.”
Four Vaxi Taxi ambulances and a “trokkie” will be able to vaccinate up to 250 people a day.
Old Mutual chief marketing officer Mosala Phillips said: “It’s critical we use all the resources at our disposal to ensure we reach outlying communities, especially the elderly and most vulnerable, who may otherwise have struggled to access transport to reach vaccination sites.”
Although sequencing remains ongoing, provincial Health Department spokesperson Mark van der Heever said the province had detected around 16 cases of the Omicron variant.
“Experts agree it is too early to predict the severity of symptoms. Further analysis is required as the sequencing is completed. But we are in a resurgence and are seeing more positive cases – but at this stage cannot directly link the increase in cases to the Omicron variant,” Van der Heever said.
The department urged eligible residents to get vaccinated during the Vooma Vaccination ending on December 10 before the holiday period fully sets in, ahead of the fourth wave.
Related Video: