Pretoria, South Africa, March 23, 2020//-President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa today announced a 21 day lockdown of the country following the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
In address to South Africans, he said: “From midnight on Thursday 26 March until midnight on Thursday 16 April, all South Africans will have to stay at home”.
In South Africa, the number of confirmed cases has increased six-fold in just eight days from 61 cases to 402 cases. While there are over 340,000 confirmed cases across the world. This number will continue to rise, he stated.
“As a consequence, the National Coronavirus Command Council has decided to enforce a nation-wide lockdown for 21 days with effect from midnight on Thursday 26 March”.
This is a decisive measure to save millions of South Africans from infection and save the lives of hundreds of thousands of people, Mr Ramaphosa said.
“While this measure will have a considerable impact on people’s livelihoods, on the life of our society and on our economy, the human cost of delaying this action would be far, far greater.
The nation-wide lockdown will be enacted in terms of the Disaster Management Act and will entail the following:
The categories of people who will be exempted from this lockdown are the following: health workers in the public and private sectors, emergency personnel, those in security services – such as the police, traffic officers, military medical personnel, soldiers – and other persons necessary for our response to the pandemic
It will also include those involved in the production, distribution and supply of food and basic goods, essential banking services, the maintenance of power, water and telecommunications services, laboratory services, and the provision of medical and hygiene products. A full list of essential personnel will be published.
Individuals will not be allowed to leave their homes except under strictly controlled circumstances, such as to seek medical care, buy food, medicine and other supplies or collect a social grant.
Temporary shelters that meet the necessary hygiene standards will be identified for homeless people. Sites are also being identified for quarantine and self-isolation for people who cannot self-isolate at home.
All shops and businesses will be closed, except for pharmacies, laboratories, banks, essential financial and payment services, including the JSE, supermarkets, petrol stations and health care providers.
Companies that are essential to the production and transportation of food, basic goods and medical supplies will remain open.
“We will publish a full list of the categories of businesses that should remain open.
Companies whose operations require continuous processes such as furnaces, underground mine operations will be required to make arrangements for care and maintenance to avoid damage to their continuous operations.”
African Eye Report
