Cape Town - The Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC), formerly the ’Hospital of Hope’, will be turned into one of the mass vaccination sites in the Western Cape.
The City of Cape Town and the Western Cape government have worked together on the project. With much of the legwork done and funding secured, contracts are due to be signed imminently with the CTICC, paving the way for implementation within the next three to four weeks.
Western Cape Premier Alan Winde, said: “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.
“I’m excited to once again be working at full speed to open this world-class conferencing venue to residents across the City of Cape Town, enabling a radical increase in life-saving vaccinations. It is our intention for it to be a Centre of Hope in our City and Province within a few weeks.”
It is envisaged that the site will be used for high volumes of vaccinations as part of the province and City of Cape Town’s commitment to vaccinating as many residents as possible against Covid-19.
Mayor Dan Plato added: “The City of Cape Town begun preparation for 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.”
The City will drive final preparations in the coming week with the aim of completing the project before the end of June. The Western Cape Government will be responsible for managing the site.
The City said that it was hopeful that the release of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine (J&J), and the arrival of further Pfizer tranches would enable the site to work to capacity in the next three weeks.
Winde continued: “At its peak, it is envisaged that this mass “vaccination centre of hope” 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 per day.
“This will have a major impact on the pace of our vaccination programme, especially as we move to vaccinate residents under the age of 60.”
It is intended that the CTICC will be the first of at least three major vaccination centres in Cape Town, ensuring greater access to residents across the city.
Plato said: “There are currently detailed plans in place for the opening of several more mass sites in the metro. The City is excited to partner with the provincial government on these projects, so that we ensure that residents have better access to vaccines.”
The provincial government and the City said they would keep residents updated on the progress of these projects, including details on activation dates for the sites – as those will be linked to the supply of vaccines over the next few weeks.
Winde said: “I would like to thank the Western Cape Department of Health, the Western Cape Department of Transport and Public Works, and the Provincial Treasury – under the leadership of MEC Nomafrench Mbombo, MEC Daylin Mitchell and MEC David Maynier – for their hard work, and of course, the City of Cape Town and the CTICC for being a committed partner in bringing this important project to fruition.”