The Vooma Vaccination Weekend was a success at various sites in the Gauteng and Northern Cape Provinces as a high influx of people were seen queuing for their jabs during 1 to 2 October 2021. As part of the Vaccination Drive, Basic Education Minister, Mrs Angie Motshekga, visited vaccination sites in the Gauteng Province and was pleased by the turn out of Gauteng Community members.

During an interactive session at one of the sites, Minister Motshekga applauded President Cyril Ramaphosa and Cabinet for rolling out the Vooma Vaccination Weekend. “I am indeed convinced that the initiative will assist Government in the recovery of the economy. Our schooling system has been severely compromised due to the COVID-19 resurgence. We therefore came out here to ensure that South African citizens consider vaccination as a solution to learning loses, unemployment and the sluggish economy,” elaborated the Minister. The vaccination sites visited included Ratanda Main Clinic and the Heidelburg Taxi Rank. Sharing her own harrowing experience with COVID-19, Minister Motshekga encouraged the community members to trust the medical experts and to get vaccinated for learners to return to their normal schooling routine.

Deputy Minister, Dr Reginah Mhaule, conducted her oversight visit to several vaccination sites in Kuruman in the Northern Cape Province. According to the Deputy Minister, the Vooma Vaccination Weekend assisted with accelerating the vaccination process on sites that were still experiencing poor turnout. “We will need to get the entire nation vaccinated if we intend to return to normality. Most of our teachers have already vaccinated, but that cannot be sufficient if there are still members of the community who are hesitant to vaccinate, and that is why we are visiting these sites to encourage people to receive their jabs. As a sector, we will continue working together to ensure that our learners remain safe,” said Deputy Minister Mhaule.