Vaccine Equity Urged in South Africa as J&J Treatment is Stalled

Speaking at the G7 Leaders' Summit, President Cyril Ramaphosa has called on all G7 members to support the waiver of intellectual property rights on Covid19 vaccines, and engage in negotiations that will result in a balanced outcome to rapidly expand production in Africa and across the world. "To successfully contain a virus of this nature, to limit loss of life and to prevent the emergence of new variants requires that as many of the world's population is vaccinated in the shortest time possible," President Ramaphosa said.

This comes after the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) decided not to release the long-awaited Johnson & Johnson (J&J) vaccines for use in the country. In a tatement, SAHPRA CEO Dr. Boitumelo Semete-Makokotlela said that after reviewing the data provided by the U.S. Food and Drud Administration (FDA), it has "made a decision not to release vaccines produced using the drug substance batches that were not suitable". The FDA has been investigating potential contamination problems at a COVID-19 vaccine plant in Baltimore, which has had a knock-on effect.

As of June 14, 2021, confirmed cases of Covid-19 in the country total 1,747,082. Of these, 57,765  proved fatal and 1,606,581 resulted in recovery while 642,946 vaccinations have been administered.

 

InFocus

First Johnson and Johnson vaccines arrive in South Africa (file photo).

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