Pop-up vaccination sites at border posts open until the weekend: health department

Vaccination sites launched at the start of the festive season at border posts will remain open until Saturday, the health department said on Monday. 

The department said it had been working jointly with stakeholders, including the presidency and the transport department, to target travellers entering and leaving SA for vaccination against Covid-19.

The pop-up sites were launched on December 23 last year at the Lebombo border between Mpumalanga and Mozambique, and the Ficksburg border between Free State and Lesotho. 

Travellers do not need to register beforehand and are urged to provide verifiable identity documents and birth certificates for children 12 to 17 years old. 

“Anyone living in the area where these border posts are situated will be able to receive vaccination services, including the booster shots, as long as they produce any form of verifiable identity document, passport or birth certificate, especially for children aged 12 to 17,” said the department.

While non-pharmaceutical measures like hand sanitising and social distancing must be adhered to, the department reiterated vaccination is the safest and most effective weapon against the virus.

“Vaccines remain the most effective weapon against severe illness, hospitalisation and death due to Covid-19 infection.

“However, it is also important to continue practising non-pharmaceutical interventions at all times, such as wearing masks, regular hand washing and sanitising, maintaining social distancing and avoiding crowded places without sufficient ventilation.”