Statement by the Minister Angie Motshekga delivered at the media briefing at the Gallagher Estate vaccination site In Midrand

Good morning, thank you for joining us.

Today we talk to you from Gallagher Estate, where we have just observed the vaccination of programme in progress. Our main focus is the personnel from the basic education sector.

Roll-out of the vaccination programme

As you know the vaccination programme in the basic education sector started on 23 June; and we initially had an allocation of three hundred thousand (300 000) doses to be administered over a period of 10-days. We planned on that basis, and we began scheduling teachers and staff to go get vaccinated in the various sites across the country.

In the past two weeks we have visited different provinces, where we monitored the progress of the vaccination programme. We did so, because we appreciate the fact that we were prioritized; and we really wanted everybody who qualifies to be vaccinated.

The latest figures that we have collected together with the Department of Health, indicate that four hundred thousand (400 000) people in the sector have been vaccinated. While the bulk of the vaccinations have been recorded, using the Electronic Vaccination Data System (EVDS) platform, we have a large number of vaccinations that were registered on paper. This was done to assist in those vaccination sites, where there were some challenges with the electronic system. The paper-based vaccinations are currently being captured into the system. We believe that there is a lot of enthusiasm in the sector; and this clearly shows in the numbers that we have recorded.

The Department of Health has offered additional doses that we will now use to vaccinate other people in the sector, who were initially not included. We initially targeted 582,000 people in the sector but we have now loaded on the EVDS system 789,554 who include food handlers, janitors, and support staff from independent schools and ECD centres located within school premises. Yesterday and today we are finalizing the data upload and confirming with provinces that all the additional people can now be vaccinated.

As a result of this we are going to ask the Department of Health to give us an extension in order to mop-up the outstanding vaccinations. We want to use the time to conclude the programme properly in the sector accommodate those excluded on terms of the criteria outlined by the Department of Health; these are the individuals who recently tested positive for COVID-19 and those who took the flu vaccine.

On teachers with comorbidities

As a Department, we respect an individual’s right not to be vaccinated, especially in those cases where people have indicated that they are not willing to get vaccinated. However, we would like to appeal to all our personnel to get the vaccine.

When schools reopen we will expect all our teachers, including those with comorbidities, to return to work. We have 16,000 teachers who have been on special leave due to the fact that they have comorbidities.

We have discussed this matter with the teacher unions, and all 5, that are part of the ELRC, are in full support of this position.

There will be no need for the DBE to develop any additional policies during this period, because it already has sufficient policies in place to address the current situation of the pandemic; and while the vaccination process is being implemented.

The Department of Basic Education has requested that a Special ELRC meeting be convened on Friday, 09 July 2021, to discuss a proposal in the form of a draft collective agreement.

This draft collective agreement aims to guide the operational requirements for educators employed in terms of the Employment of Educators Act, 1998 (Act No. 76 of 1998), following the implementation of the Basic Education Sector COVID-19 Vaccination Programme.

The draft collective agreement will also serve as a guide to manage vulnerable employees in the context of the current SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, as mentioned in the Regulations issued in terms of section 27(2) of the Disaster Management Act, 2002.

The Department of Basic Education is hoping to finalise this process with the teacher unions before schools reopen.

In conclusion, let me take this opportunity to address a matter which has been making headlines in the media in the last few days.

The vaccination programme is one of the biggest projects we have had to undertake in a short space of time. It requires coordination, communication and cooperation. While we have made good progress, there have been some challenges that we have also encountered.

There continues to be discrepancies between people who are submitted and those who appear on the EVDS system. Nationally, names appear on the database but there is a problem at the sites when people get there to get their vaccinated. We have received reports of people having been turned away and some do not return as a result because they travel long distances to reach the sites.

Another matter that has come to our attention is that provinces have informed educators in Independent schools and SGB appointed personnel not to go to sites until they are sure that they appear on the EVDS. This has slowed down the number of people turning up at the sites in this category.

There are myths about the vaccines that we also need to address in our communities. We have also received reports from our social partners who indicate that some educators and support staff members are refusing to get the vaccine on the basis of their religious beliefs. At the start of the programme we saw many religious come forward to receive the vaccine. Let me say this;

• All vaccines used in South Africa have been tested and approved by SAHPRA – an entity of the National Department of Health created by Government with the responsibility to regulate health products in the country.

• Getting the vaccine will protect you from severe illness, hospitalization and death from COVID-19.

• When you are vaccinated, your immune system will recognize the virus quickly when you get infected with COVID-19 and prevents you from being severely ill or dying.

• Get vaccinated, you will be doing it for yourself and your loved ones.

• When we collectively take the decision to get vaccinated, we take a step closer to returning to getting back to life as we knew it.

It is for that reason that we make this appeal to everybody to ensure that you please get vaccinated so we can focus on the task of stabilizing schooling. We really need to overcome hesitancy.

The learning losses are getting worse daily and the impact on the system will indeed affect negatively in the future. We will need to work together to ensure that we get vaccinated and indeed continue to comply with the health and safety protocols relevant to Level 4 of the risk adjusted strategy.

Thank you

Source: Government of South Africa