(Adds context, detail)
JOHANNESBURG, Jan 3 (Reuters) - South Africa is trying to
get COVID-19 vaccines as soon as February, but the timing will
depend on bilateral negotiations with pharmaceutical companies,
Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said on Sunday.
Mkhize's comments come after a group of prominent local
health experts publicly criticised the government for moving too
slowly to procure coronavirus vaccines and make public its
rollout plan.
South Africa is participating in the COVAX vaccine
distribution initiative co-led by the World Health Organization
but only expects to receive the first doses from the facility
sometime in the second quarter of the year.
That time frame has caused anxiety among some scientists and
academics given that some countries have already started
vaccinating.
Mkhize added at a news conference that the government's aim
was to vaccinate a minimum of 67% of the country's population of
roughly 60 million people to reach herd immunity.
He said bilateral discussions had been held in relation to
vaccines from Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca
and Johnson & Johnson, as well as over vaccines
from Russia and China.
Mkhize said officials were considering three mechanisms to
fund vaccine procurement: government financing, medical aids and
a private sector contribution.
(Reporting by Alexander Winning, Editing by Timothy Heritage
and Alexandra Hudson)
Astrazeneca (AZN)
