Despite COVID jab roll-out in South Africa, frustrations remain

The COVID pandemic has battered the economy and health system, leaving some South Africans worried about hard times.

Johannesburg, South Africa – When the South African government launched its much-anticipated coronavirus vaccination campaign on Wednesday, Johanna Monama did not pay much attention. Instead of following live televised coverage of healthcare workers and President Cyril Ramaphosa rolling up their sleeves, Monama, 34, was tending to other problems: hunger, housing and despair. A single mother to a 13-year-old, she has struggled without a steady income since she lost her job at a major South African bank last year. After she was let go, Monama, an auxiliary social worker, became involved in community work for which she receives a small stipend. Registering people for food parcels in a low-income neighbourhood east of inner-city Johannesburg, she realised that her personal problems – unemployment, not knowing how to pay rent or school fees – were small compared with those others were facing.