The Western Cape government and the City of Cape Town have agreed to turn the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) into a mass vaccination site, with formal contracts to be signed imminently, paving the way for implementation within the next three to four weeks.

The site, at its peak, will be able to vaccinate over 4 000 people a day. It will have up to 50 vaccination stations, with each station capable of administering 100 vaccinations a day.

According to Western Cape Premier Alan Winde this will have a major impact on the pace of the province’s vaccination programme, especially when the country moves to the next phase of the national roll-out. 

He said much of the legwork is done and the funding for the endeavour has already been secured. 

Winde says that the intention is for the CTICC to be the first of at least three major vaccination centres in Cape Town.

“This is one of the first ‘vaccination centres of hope’. Just over one year ago, our teams worked quickly and efficiently to convert the CTICC into the Western Cape’s first major field hospital, our ‘Hospital of Hope’, and it became a place of healing for the thousands of residents who received life-saving treatment there,” he said.

City of Cape Town Mayor Dan Plato said the site would be used for high volumes of vaccinations as part of the province’s and City’s commitment to vaccinating as many residents as possible against Covid-19.

“The City of Cape Town began preparation of the site in March 2021. Work included project management, concept design and costing. These plans were shared with the provincial government who, after several engagements with the City, made the decision to utilise the CTICC in this regard,” he said.

The City of Cape Town will drive final preparations in the coming weeks with the aim of completing the project before the end of June. The Western Cape government will be responsible for the management of the site.

“The site, however, can only work at full capacity once vaccine supplies allow. We are hopeful that the release of the Johnson and Johnson vaccine, and the arrival of further Pfizer tranches will enable this in the next 3 weeks,” Plato said.

He also shared that detailed plans were in place for the opening of several more mass sites in the Metro.