Last checked at 
(Adds detail, context)
JOHANNESBURG, Feb 23 (Reuters) - South Africa's health
minister said on Tuesday that government advisers had grouped
COVID-19 vaccines into three groups and those considered for
"immediate use" were the Johnson & Johnson (J&J), Pfizer
and Moderna shots.
The country started rolling out the J&J vaccine in a
research study targeting healthcare workers last week and hopes
to receive Pfizer doses in the coming months.
It has paused AstraZeneca vaccinations because of a
small trial showing the British company's shot offered minimal
protection against mild to moderate illness caused by the
dominant local coronavirus variant.
Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said the government had placed
"huge orders on J&J and Pfizer which will be finalised in the
next few days and announced when concluded", adding that
discussions with Moderna were ongoing.
Mkhize said the Ministerial Advisory Committee on vaccines
had placed Russia's Sputnik V vaccine and alternatives from
China's Sinopharm and Sinovac in a second group where South
Africa is interested but requires more technical information.
A third group where vaccines "may not be suitable for
immediate use in South Africa" includes the AstraZeneca and
Novavax vaccines.
South Africa has recorded almost half of the COVID-19 deaths
and over a third of confirmed infections in all of Africa, but
has lagged wealthier nations in launching its immunisation
campaign.
The government plans to vaccinate 40 million people, or
two-thirds of the population.
(Reporting by Alexander Winning
Editing by Promit Mukherjee and Alison Williams)
