Bangalee, AvaniaBangalee, Varsha2022-10-062022-10-062021-10Bangalee, A. & Bangalee, V. Fake news and fallacies: Exploring vaccine hesitancy in South Africa. South African Family Practice 2021;63(1), a5345. https://doi.org/10.4102/safp.v63i1.5345.2078-6190 (print)2078-6204 (online)10.4102/safp.v63i1.5345https://repository.up.ac.za/handle/2263/87551Historically, vaccine hesitancy (VH) has been a thorn in the side of public health efforts to contain and eradicate infectious diseases. This phenomenon is magnified in light of the current coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Surveys conducted across South Africa since the outbreak of COVID-19 demonstrate the complexity of factors that contribute towards VH in this population. Amidst the negative press that the COVID-19 vaccine has received, especially across social media, understanding and combatting VH remains important to achieve herd immunity. This article aims to shed light on key factors fuelling COVID-19 VH in South Africa and provides a framework from which to address this problem.en© 2021. The Authors. Licensee: AOSIS. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License.VaccinesPublic healthVaccine acceptanceImmunisationCOVID-19 pandemicCoronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)South Africa (SA)Vaccine hesitancy (VH)Article