Coronavirus: South Africa to roll out AstraZeneca vaccine in ‘stepped manner’ to assess efficacy, official says

Professor Salim Abdool Karim, co-chair of South Africa’s Ministerial Advisory Committee on COVID-19, said Monday during a World Health Organization (WHO) briefing that South Africa will roll out AstraZeneca’s coronavirus vaccine in a “stepped manner” to assess its ability to prevent severe illness. South Africa said on Sunday that it put on hold its use of the shot after research showed it was only minimally effective in preventing mild-to-moderate illness against a variant of the virus now dominant in the country.

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