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HomeWeekly RoundupIpsos: Percentage of South Africans lacking faith in vaccines rises sharply

Ipsos: Percentage of South Africans lacking faith in vaccines rises sharply

South Africa plans to vaccinate 67% of the population – some 38m citizens – against the coronavirus before the end of 2021. But, says a Business Insider report, the latest global survey shows that only 53% of South Africans would gladly accept the COVID-19 jab as of mid-December.

This level of vaccine mistrust is only beaten by respondents in Russia (43%) and France (40%). Opposition to vaccines in general is cited by about one in four of those who won’t get a COVID-19 vaccine in Russia and South Africa, but by fewer than 10% in South Korea, Japan, and China.

The report says South Africa is lagging far behind the global curve, not only in the acquisition of vaccines that can prevent COVID-19, but also in perceptions around the effectiveness and safety of immunisations. These shifting attitudes have been detailed by global market researchers, Ipsos, as part of a survey series conducted for the World Economic Forum.

The latest survey, conducted in mid-December, shows that South Africa’s willingness to accept a COVID-19 vaccine was eroding up to mid-December.

Business Insider reports that while this gradual trend is recognised as a global phenomenon, South Africans are, according to the Ipsos poll, far below the global average of persons who would accept the COVID-19 vaccine. Out of 15 countries surveyed in December, an average of 65% of respondents said they were ready to accept a COVID-19 vaccine.

The Ipsos survey, which has been extended to more than 50,000 participants since July, also shows a higher degree of degradation in South Africans’ confidence about the development and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines.

Countries surveyed alongside South Africa in the latest Ipsos poll include Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, South Korea, Spain, the UK, and the US.

 

[link url="https://www.businessinsider.co.za/by-mid-december-47-of-south-africans-said-they-refuse-a-coronavirus-jab-up-sharply-from-oct-2021-1"]Full Business Insider report[/link]

 

[link url="https://www.ipsos.com/en/global-attitudes-covid-19-vaccine-december-2020"]Ispos survey[/link]

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