Africa’s top university to bar unvaccinated staff, students from campus

University of Cape Town’s council will mandate all staff and students to get vaccinated against Covid-19 starting from January.

The plan’s details are anticipated in December, and it will make Africa’s top university the first in the country to need confirmation of vaccination to get admission to the campus.

This month, South Africa released electronic vaccination certificates and is debating whether inoculation should be required for specific occasions.

The match between South Africa and Ghana last week was the first time people have been allowed to attend a sporting event in the nation since the coronavirus outbreak struck early last year.

Two major companies — financial services group Sanlam and medical aid provider Discovery — have meanwhile asked all staff to be immunised by 2022.

The University of Cape Town Council said it had asked the executive to “develop the operational details” for approval in December.

The decision was partly based on a survey of staff and students in which most respondents supported a mandatory vaccine policy, it said in a statement.

The country worst-hit by coronavirus in Africa was slow to start inoculating its population and is struggling with vaccine hesitancy.

Jabs were opened up to children aged 12 and older on Wednesday in a bid to limit Covid-19 outbreaks in schools.

South Africa aims to vaccinate 40 million people by February and is about a quarter of the way toward that goal.

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