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(Changes sourcing, adds detail on AU doses)
JOHANNESBURG, Jan 18 (Reuters) - South Africa, which has yet
to receive its first coronavirus vaccine doses, will be getting
9 million from Johnson & Johnson, the health ministry
said on Monday.
The government of Africa's most advanced economy is trying
to secure enough COVID-19 vaccines after health workers and
scientists criticised it for not moving fast enough to inoculate
its people.
The country has recorded more than 1.3 million infections
and more than 37,000 deaths related to the virus, the most in
Africa.
Health ministry spokeswoman Lwazi Manzi did not specify when
the J&J doses might be available. She was confirming a report in
the Business Day newspaper.
The J&J doses take the total number of doses that South
Africa stands to receive to more than 30 million.
J&J did not respond to an email seeking comment. The U.S.
healthcare company's chief scientific officer said last week it
was on track to roll out its single-shot coronavirus vaccine in
March, and expects to have clear data on how effective it is by
the end of this month or early February.
South Africa should also receive about 12 million doses from
the COVAX global vaccine distribution scheme co-led by the World
Health Organization, about 12 million from an African Union (AU)
arrangement, and 1.5 million from the Serum Institute of India
which is making AstraZeneca shots.
The calculation for the AU allocation is based on South
Africa's share of the continent's population.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, the AU chair, said
last week that the organisation had secured 270 million vaccine
doses and that they would be distributed based on countries'
population size.
South Africa's health ministry said this month it was in
advanced negotiations with J&J.
Local pharmaceutical company Aspen will be
manufacturing J&J shots but unless a firm agreement is signed
with the South African government all those doses will be
exported.
(Reporting by Alexander Winning; Editing by Nick Macfie and
Timothy heritage)
