SEDIBENG.- The Gauteng Provincial Government has said that it is pleased with the start of the vaccination rollout programme. The rollout programme kicked off with 24 vaccination sites and 11 old age homes on Monday, 17 May 2021. By close of business on Tuesday, 18 May, 8 060 people were vaccinated at Old Age Homes and health facilities. The government said that to date, 134 420 people, including healthcare workers have been vaccinated. Phase 1B of the vaccination programme is focusing on healthcare workers, traditional practitioners and funeral parlour employees, while Phase 2 of the programme is prioritising persons who are 60 years and older, as they are more vulnerable to serious illness, hospitalisation and death, in the event they contract COVID-19. The provincial government welcomed the interest shown by many leaders from various sectors of society who came forward to be vaccinated and commit to spread the message about the importance of vaccines in the fight against COVID-19. “Vaccination sites will be scaled up as more vaccine doses are available in the province. Over 5 000 vaccinators have been trained, with 2 445 vaccinators practising for this period.” Premier David Makhura paid tribute to all municipalities in the province for their role in the vaccination programme thus far. The premier also thanked all healthcare workers who are involved in the vaccination programme and called on Gauteng residents to register on the EVDS. He said various measures were put in place to help register people who are 60 years and older. In Sedibeng elderly People and Health Care Workers came in numbers at different Medical Sites around Sedibeng District: Johan Heyns CHC, Levai Mbatha CHC, Sebokeng Regional Hospital, and one Non Medical Site in Ratanda Multipurpose Centre received their COVID-19 Jabs. “Every health district has a database of elderly people who are not able to come to site. They have already been visited by our community healthcare workers at home to register them, the premier said. As of 18 May, 346 379 people have been registered on the Electronic Vaccination Data System (EVDS) in the province. For assistance, contact the Gauteng Hotline on 0800 GAUTENG