South Africa's first coronavirus vaccine doses arrived by airplane on Monday, offering some relief for health workers who have been stretched during a second wave of infections and are first in line for the shots.

President Cyril Ramaphosa and other top officials were at the OR Tambo international airport to receive the 1 million shots of the AstraZeneca vaccine, produced by the Serum Institute of India (SII).

The shots that arrived on Monday will be checked over roughly 10 to 14 days before inoculations can begin.