Required vaccinations for South Africa and how much time before?

Question

I was looking at VFS application and there it said that you need yellow fever vaccination ONLY if you are visiting South Africa for more than 3 months. Fortunately, for me as I'm on a conference mailing list came to know it is advisable to at least take 'Hep A' vaccination 2 weeks before travel. I did look at http://www.vfsglobal.com/southafrica/india/conferences.html and various vfsglobal pages which mention nothing as well as all the useful links which also mention everything else except medical advice. I did see the UK one question and that is a long list and scary . Health vaccinations for UK

It would be nice if such information could be known somewhere. The UK guys on my conference list got some medical advisory hence I came to know that it is needed so did so.

Answer 1

The Centers for Disease Control website provides vaccination advice.

Check the vaccines and medicines list and visit your doctor (ideally, 4-6 weeks) before your trip to get vaccines or medicines you may need.

For Yellow fever it states:

There is no risk of yellow fever in South Africa. The government of South Africa requires proof of yellow fever vaccination only if you are arriving from a country with risk of yellow fever

India is not on the list.

The recommended vaccines depend on which you already have, what country you live in, and your anticipated activities. For example, a rabies vaccination may be recommended if you are camping, but not if you are attending a conference.

By the way, your doctor is probably going to be the best person to give you advice. He or she should be familiar with the vaccination requirements of your destination country, or at least be able to find them readily, as well as the applicability to you and your situation.