News in South Africa 7th January: 1. Lockdown Level 4 a possibility: South African government officials have called for stricter measures to curb soaring coronavirus infections at a meeting to discuss the state’s response to the pandemic. President Cyril Ramaphosa is hosting a meeting of the National Coronavirus Command Council on Wednesday to assess the […]
News in South Africa 6th January: 1. NCC meeting not urgent: Government communications said there was nothing urgent about Wednesday’s national coronavirus command council (NCCC) meeting. GCIS director general on Tuesday has announced that members of the joint operations centre will report to the president. This after rumours were spread that President Cyril Ramaphosa was […]
News in South Africa 5th January: 1. Lesotho borders temporarily closed: SA temporarily closed border gates with Lesotho at Ficksburg because it could not handle the number of people who wanted to cross. At the Beitbridge border post with Zimbabwe, health minister Zweli Mkhize spoke about large numbers of fake coronavirus test results being presented. Home […]
News in South Africa 4th January: 1. Government aims for herd immunity: At least 67% of South Africans will need to be vaccinated against Covid-19 to ensure herd immunity, health minister Zweli Mkhize has announced during a public briefing. On Sunday, Mkhize unveiled the government’s strategy to secure vaccines and roll them out to two-thirds […]
News in South Africa 31st December: 1. Zero tolerance for lockdown rule-breakers: The country’s security forces stepped up checks in Johannesburg streets on Tuesday evening, under orders to implement what the authorities called a “zero-tolerance approach” to violators. The restrictions wind back the clock to the early months of the coronavirus pandemic in South Africa. […]
News in South Africa 30th December: 1. Long wait for vaccines: South Africa, which has Africa’s worst recorded coronavirus outbreak, may have to wait months to receive its first vaccines even as other countries race to roll out the shots. The government only expects vaccines that it paid a deposit to secure from the World […]
News in South Africa 29th December: 1. Return to lockdown level 3 and no alcohol: President Cyril Ramaphosa has announced that South Africa will move back to lockdown level 3, taking effect from midnight tonight. In an address on Monday evening (28 December), Ramaphosa said that the move is being done to limit super-spreader events […]
News in South Africa 28th December: 1. Liquor ban consideration: South Africa is considering reinstating a total ban on liquor sales as the number of Covid-19 infections surge over the summer holiday season. Restrictions on alcohol sales have been implemented to various degrees since one of the world’s most stringent lockdowns was imposed in March, […]
News in South Africa 23rd December: 1. Second wave in SA reaching inland: Much of the coronavirus focus is on coastal regions right now. But Gauteng has the highest cumulative Covid-19 caseload in South Africa and – even before holidaymakers return from the coast – at least 20 wards have been identified as developing hotspots, […]
News in South Africa 22nd December: 1. 17 health facilities investigated – many challenges found: A shortage of personal protection equipment (PPE) and staff, poor hygiene and substandard ambulance services were the key challenges highlighted in a public protector investigation into 17 public health facilities. On Monday, Adv Busi Mkhwebane released a report into investigations into several departments, including the health […]
