SCIENTIFIC modelling shows Gauteng is likely to see a peak in its fourth wave of infections in the second and third week of December ahead of the festive season, says premier David Makhura.
In a media briefing on Thursday (2 December), Makhura said that this does not mean that infections will necessarily subside at this date, but it might take a longer time for infections to drop and that the wave could continue into Christmas and January. He said that hospitalisations are also expected to lag this peak and that more admissions could be seen later in December.
The premier said the province has seen a significant uptake in vaccinations since discovering the omicron variant, with the province setting a target of 500,000 more vaccinated people by Christmas.
Makhura said the increase in vaccine uptake was very positive and would be a key differentiator in how severe the country’s fourth Covid-19 wave is, the introduction of lockdown restrictions and the decision to introduce mandatory vaccines.
“The good news is that we are back to above 50,000 vaccinations a day. We had fallen below 30 000 vaccinations a day in the past few weeks. If we sustain 50 000 vaccinations daily during this period & into the festive season, we will be closer to reaching our target,” he said.
“We have eight million adults who are not vaccinated, and this is cause for concern. We want to persuade more people to take responsibility for their health by getting vaccinated. Once we have tried all options, we will consider mandatory vaccinations.”
Makhura said that the key differentiation between the country’s second wave in December 2020 and now is that South Africa has a vaccine supply available to everyone.
“Let us avoid risky behaviours of large gatherings as they put us at greater risk. We need to vaccinate as this is the most powerful weapon to defeat the Omicron variant. We are in a better position than we were during the first wave – we have vaccines and the best scientists.”