South Africa starts work on coronavirus vaccine

South Africa’s Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande has announced that research institutions in the country have started to work on developing a vaccine for the coronavirus.

The University of Cape Town, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, and the Biological and Vaccines Institute of Southern Africa are all understood to be working on the project. 

Mr Nzimande addressed journalists on Tuesday, shortly after President Cyril Ramaphosa announced a three-week lockdown in the country to curb the spread of the virus. 

He said a number of existing drugs were being trialled, supplementing international trials coordinated by the World Health Organisation. 

The minister announced that progress would be expected in about 18 months time.

Mr Nzimande also provided an update on South Africa’s higher education facilities, saying that universities and colleges had implemented an early vacation but that short- to medium-term strategies such as online studying were already underway in most institutions. 

He also assured students that NSFAS financial aid allowances would still be paid, despite universities many universities suspending studies over the outbreak. 

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