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This week's highlights
- Webinar with the UN on Covid-19 communication campaign best practice
- Reportback: mandatory vaccination webinar
- Roll up your sleeves campaign
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A note from Martin Kingston
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Dear B4SA and business colleagues
There are few issues more topical, important or urgent for South Africa than mandatory vaccination. As things currently stand, vaccination rates are well below the desired rate of 300,000+ per day, which would significantly lessen the scale and impact of a fourth wave over December.
And time is running out. For anyone to be fully vaccinated in time for the festive season, they must get their first Pfizer shot by 20 October, and it is now increasingly unlikely that 70% of adults will have had their first jab before then. In addition, there appears to be growing apathy towards the vaccination: the Gauteng province, for instance, recently reported that a million people had not returned to get their second jab. In our view, a combination of mandatory vaccination policies, as well as incentives, are going to be necessary alongside the demand generation communications and mobilisation campaign, to get as many people as possible vaccinated.
We appreciate that some people feel that their rights may be infringed on with the introduction of vaccine mandates, but, as Dr Ron Whelan from Discovery pointed out in Friday’s B4SA webinar on the topic, all employees have rights – not only the unvaccinated ones. Employers and businesses too, have rights, as well as a legal and moral obligation to provide a safe workplace and safe services to customers.
Business has a leadership role to play in providing guidance and taking the initiative, and doing so with urgency, in implementing vaccine mandates. This should form part of the comprehensive strategy to maximise swift and comprehensive vaccination so that, as a country, we can all get back to the business of living safely, and maximising the scope for economic recovery.
Martin Kingston, Chair, B4SA Steering Committee
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Webinar with the UN on Covid-19 communication campaign best practice
So far less than 30% of adult South Africans are fully vaccinated. What our data shows, is that after each age cohort opens for vaccination, demand spikes and then soon plateaus. If we are to vaccinate the vast majority of South Africans we need – as business, government, labour and civil society – to urgently find ways to mobilise and communicate with 10s of millions of people to drive up demand. To do this, we must both develop our own best practice and learn from other countries. This will be the role of brand, advertising, communications, and community mobilisation specialists.
Please join us on Friday 15 October, from 1pm-2.30pm, as we explore South Africa’s new vaccination campaign and international best practice with experts from the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR). Their researchers have studied Covid-19 campaigns around the world and will share their insights into what communications and incentives work for companies and countries. They will take us through practical case studies and provide free downloadable “General Use” and “Strategies for Companies” toolkits. In advance, we would like to thank SAB for helping to secure Dr French and his team from the UN.
We will also reveal more of the new national #RollUpYourSleevesSA and get Vaccinated! campaign launched last week by the Solidarity Fund in support of the National Department of Health. In addition to being an umbrella call to action through all media, the campaign also includes resources for business and social partners to use.
Presenters include
- Wendy Tlou, Executive Head: Humanitarian Relief & Communication, Solidarity Fund
- Estrella Merlos, Policy Specialist, UNITAR
- Dr Jeff French, Member, Advisory Committee, Division for People, UNITAR
- Angela Montano, e-Learning Specialist, UNITAR
There will be an opportunity to ask questions as part of the panel discussion with SA brand and marketing leaders. Links to the resources will be provided. Please look out for the invitation, which will be sent to our database in due course.
Reportback: mandatory vaccination webinar
About 500 people attended B4SA’s webinar on mandatory vaccination on Friday afternoon, where participants heard legal opinion on the matter, as well as perspectives from leaders of local companies where mandatory vaccination has been put into place.
Halton Cheadle from law firm BCHC presented the legalities of mandatory vaccination, while Discovery’s Dr Ron Whelan, Sanlam’s Karl Socikwa and Life Healthcare’s Peter Wharton-Hood unpacked their companies’ support for mandatory vaccination.
Many of those who attended agreed that mandatory vaccination is something businesses need to consider and lead on, since the law supports it as long as due process is followed. It was noted that business leaders have a moral duty to create a safe environment for both staff and customers.
Companies need to consider how it would affect staff and clients, however, and support it with significant communication and engagement to answer questions. It was clear from the speakers that many of their employees simply needed an empathetic, fact-based conversation to persuade them to get the jab. The link to the recording can be found here.
Roll up your sleeves campaign
The Solidarity Fund has sounded the call for South Africans to unite and get behind vaccination with its moving “Roll up your sleeves” campaign. In addition to the above-the-line material, there’s also a set of A5 flyers in all official South African languages, which can be downloaded, free of charge, here.
Private sector sites list updated
Our most up-to-date list of private sector vaccination sites can be found here.
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COVID-19 Statistics as at 11 October 2021
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Vaccine dashboard
The NDoH’s vaccine dashboard can be found at: https://sacoronavirus.co.za/latest-vaccine-statistics/
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QR Code link to EVDS registration site
The QR code below links directly to the EVDS registration site. Please use it in any print or applicable marketing material to help spread the message.
Users simply need to open the camera app on their mobile phone and point it at the code. A notification will open on the phone taking them directly to the site to register.
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B4SA vaccination myths document available for your convenience
B4SA has drawn up an extensive document debunking common myths around Covid-19 vaccination, which is available for you to use in your own vaccine communications.
You can access the document here.
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Vaccination Communications Toolkit
The government has released a free Vaccination Communications Toolkit for use by anyone wanting to contribute to the communications efforts against COVID-19, and in support of vaccination and registration.
Access it here.
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