News in South Africa 21st January: 1. Economy needs restrictions reduced: Western Cape premier Alan Winde is offering suggestions how to allow a controlled reopening of the economy under Covid-19 regulations, including a limited resumption of the sale of alcohol. He told the provincial legislature about his concerns for businesses and that he had held […]
News in South Africa 20th January: 1. Funding for vaccines ‘won’t be a problem’: President Cyril Ramaphosa says that finding funds for the Covid-19 vaccine rollout ‘won’t be a problem’. The president did not specify why it wouldn’t be a problem or where the money would come from, given South Africa’s dire financial state. Treasury […]
News in South Africa 19th January: 1. Unjust naming of new Covid variant: A group of South African and international scientists have taken a strong stand against calling 501. V2, the latest variant of SARS-CoV-2 spreading like wildfire across the country, “the South African variant”. Top researchers, who have delved into the variant for the […]
News in South Africa 18th January: 1. Tax hike for vaccination funding: South Africa’s National Treasury is considering raising taxes as one of several possible mechanisms to fund the vaccination drive against Covid-19 it was reported. The government viewed the vaccines as a public good and was committed to financing their rollout, with or without […]
News in South Africa 15th January: 1. Calls for Level 5 in hotspots: Health experts have called on Gauteng residents to put themselves voluntarily into lockdown level five, warning that the peak of the second wave was still to come. Experts also called on government to introduce online learning until there’s a clear downward trend […]
News in South Africa 14th January: 1. Wasteful expenditure in hospitals: Investigations are raising questions around possible wasteful spending or corrupt spending regarding Gauteng’s field hospitals and building capacity for Covid-19 patients – which has simply not materialised. Gauteng Premier David Makhura has reported that since June 2020 Gauteng has created 2,419 new critical-care and […]
News in South Africa 13th January: 1. Anti-vaxxers spread unfounded fears: Fake news about the coronavirus has become a problem on social media. Professor, Salim Abdool Karim, Chairperson of the Ministerial Advisory Committee on COVID-19, says people need to stop fearmongering around the vaccine. He says while no one will be forced to take it, […]
News in South Africa 12th January: 1. Schools still to open?: Cyril Ramaphosa offered little clarity on Monday evening on whether schools would open on January 25, as concerns remain about the Covid-19 second wave, hinting that an announcement was imminent. “As schools and other educational institutions prepare to begin the new academic year, there […]
News in South Africa 11th January: 1. Level 4 more likely: Another spike in Covid-19 cases is coming, health experts have warned, but they say it can be avoided or its severity reduced if Gauteng is moved to lockdown level 4 for 21 days. The experts warned a significant spike in cases was expected in […]
News in South Africa 8th January: 1. Oxford-AstraZenica delivery vaccines: As the country recorded yet another “grim milestone” on Wednesday night – 21 832 new Covid-19 infections – the highest daily increase to date, there is finally a glimmer of hope at the end of the tunnel for exhausted and mentally strained healthcare workers. Health […]
