Cape Town Announces Mass Vaccination Site, 1 of 3 ‘Vaccination Centres of Hope’

The City of Cape Town and the Western Cape government have worked together to turn the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) into a mass vaccination site… a ‘vaccination centre of hope’.

With much of the legwork done and the funding for this important endeavour secured, formal contracts are due to be signed imminently with the CTICC, paving the way for implementation within the next three to four weeks, the City said in a statement on Thursday.

Western Cape Premier, Alan Winde, said: ‘Just over one year ago, our teams worked quickly and efficiently to convert the CTICC into the Western Cape’s first major field hospital, our ‘Hospital of Hope’, and it became a place of healing for the thousands of residents who received life-saving treatment there. I’m excited to once again be working at full speed to open this world-class conferencing venue to residents across the City of Cape Town, enabling a radical increase in life-saving vaccinations. It is our intention for it to be a Centre of Hope in our City and Province within a few weeks.’

It is envisaged that the site will be used for high volumes of vaccinations as part of both the Province and City’s commitment to vaccinating as many of our residents as possible against Covid-19.

City Mayor Dan Plato said preparation for the site began in March 2021, and should be finished by the end of June.

The site, however, can only work at full capacity once vaccine supplies allows it… so organisers are hopeful that the release of the Johnson and Johnson vaccine, and the arrival of further Pfizer tranches will enable this in the next three weeks.

Premier Winde continued: ‘At its peak, it is envisaged that this mass “vaccination centre of hope” will be able to vaccinate over 4 000 people a day. It will have up to 50 vaccination stations, with each station capable of administering 100 vaccinations per day. This will have a major impact on the pace of our vaccination programme, especially as we move to vaccinate residents under the age of 60.’

It is intended that the CTICC will be the first of at least three major vaccination centres in Cape Town, ensuring greater access to residents across the city. Updates will be coming in the near future on the other two centres.