Durban: According to the latest statistics, only 36% of people in KwaZulu-Natal have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19.
This is the lowest in South Africa, compared to the other nine provinces.
The statistics in the past 24 hours shows 2.6 million people out of 7.2 million have been inoculated.
However, 41% have received a dose of the Covid-19 vaccine.
During the launch of a vaccination drive, the KZN Health MEC Nomagugu Simelane said false beliefs about the Covid-19 vaccines, which are mostly peddled on social media, were to blame for the slow vaccination uptake.
“The number of people who have vaccinated in the province is extremely low. Those that live in rural areas and townships are the ones that are not coming out to vaccinate. That's why we decided to have a programme that specifically targets them,” said Simelane.
The Free State is the only province to have vaccinated 50% of its population, with the Western Cape in second place with 49.7 % of people fully vaccinated.
Limpopo and the Eastern Cape are not far behind also etching closer to the 50 percent mark.
Over 17 million South Africans are vaccinated, accounting for 43% of the population.
The country has administered 31.7 million vaccines to date.
A total of 99 458 people have succumbed to Covid-19 related complications since the start of the pandemic.
IOL