Zweli Mkhize, South Africa's health minister, has stated that downpayments made to Johnson & Johnson (J&J) and Pfizer for COVID-19 vaccines are not refundable under any circumstances, Reuters news agency reported on Wednesday.

South Africa is paying USD10 per dose for the J&J and Pfizer vaccines.

The health minister made the comments following South Africa's suspension of the rollout of J&J's vaccine due to a recommendation by US federal health agencies to pause its use because of rare cases of blood clots.

According to Reuters, this suspension is another setback in the country's efforts to immunise its population, after it shelved plans to kick-start vaccinations with AstraZeneca's vaccine in February because a small trial showed the shot offered minimal protection against mild to moderate illness from the dominant local coronavirus variant.

At a virtual meeting with a parliamentary committee, Mkhize stated that South Africa had to navigate "difficult and sometimes unreasonable" demands from vaccine manufacturers during negotiations. He added "As government we have found ourselves in a precarious position of having to choose between saving our citizens' lives and risking putting the country's assets into private companies' hands."