We can't banish COVID-19. But we can end the pandemic with vaccinations

By Benjamin T H Smart, Associate Professor, University of Johannesburg
Herkulaas MvE Combrink, Research Coordinator/Strategic Data Science Support Specialist, University of the Free State

South Africa’s daily rate of new infections has been on a steady decline for some time. But, truth be told, a fourth wave is probably just on the horizon – and a fifth, and a sixth, and a seventh. This is true of every country in the world.

These waves could be instigated by various phenomena. Perhaps a “super-spreader” event or two, or the arrival of a new and more contagious variant.

Thanks to a successful vaccination programme, smallpox was

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