SA to spend up to R19.3bn on Covid-19 vaccine rollout

South Africa could spend as much as R19.3 billion ($1.33 billion) over the next three years to vaccinate most of its population against Covid-19, the Treasury said in a budget presented to parliament on Wednesday.

The 2021 budget allocates R1.3 billion for vaccine purchases in the current fiscal year, which ends next month, while R9 billion is earmarked for the rollout over the medium term.

“Given the uncertainty around final costs, an estimated R9 billion could be drawn on from the contingency reserve and emergency allocations, bringing total potential funding for the vaccination programme to about R19.3 billion,” the Treasury said.