SOUTH Africa has imposed further COVID-19 restrictions on Monday, closing down beaches in the Eastern Cape and limiting large public gatherings ahead of the festive season, as the country looks to slow a sharp rise in infections.
South Africa, which has recorded 866,127 total coronavirus cases, has seen a sharp spike in infections since the start of December with reported cases hovering around 8,000 per day in last few days, from around 3,000 in November.
The country’s reported daily cases in the first wave peaked at around 14,000 in July.
“Given the rate at which new cases have grown over the last two weeks, there is every possibility that if we do not act urgently … the second wave will be more severe than the first wave,” President Cyril Ramaphosa said in a televised address.
Alcohol sales will now be permitted only between Monday and Thursday, and the curfew will start one hour earlier and be from 2300 to 0400, he said.
“The curfew is meant to prevent gatherings that go on late into the night, while enabling restaurants, bars and taverns to continue to operate and earn an income,” said Ramaphosa.
“We should all remember that the hours of curfew also apply to Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve. This means that we will all need to make changes to the way in which we celebrate these occasions.”
Ramaphosa said the main reasons for the sudden rise in cases have been large gatherings and travel.
Beaches and public parks in districts with the highest number of infections will be closed from Dec. 16 to Jan. 3 in the tourism hotspots of the Eastern Cape and the Garden Route.
Some other beaches will also be closed and on others festivals, live music and live performances will be prohibited, he said.
Restaurants and bars will have to close by 10 p.m. across the country.
“We have therefore agreed to adopt a differentiated approach, which takes into account the different circumstances in different areas of the country. In the areas with the highest rate of infection, beaches and public parks will be closed for the duration of the festive season from the 16th of December to the 3rd of January. This will apply to all of the Eastern Cape, as well as to the Garden Route district in the Western Cape,” said Ramaphosa.
“In KwaZulu-Natal, beaches and public parks will be closed on what are traditionally the busiest days of the season. These days are the 16th, 25th, 26th and 31st of December 2020 and the 1st, 2nd and 3rd of January 2021. The beaches and public parks of the Northern Cape and the Western Cape – with the exception of the Garden Route – will remain open to the public over the festive season.”
The sweeping restrictions just before the festive season will batter the hospitality, travel and tourism industry which was the hardest hit in the first lockdown in April.
Ramaphosa said South Africa has concluded all processes to ensure its participation in the World Health Organization’s COVAX facility and initial vaccines will cover 10% of its population in the early part of next year.
“As part of this facility, it is expected that South Africa will receive initial vaccines to cover 10% of our population in the early part of next year. We are also part of the African Vaccine Acquisition Task Team that is looking at alternative financing mechanisms to secure additional vaccines for African countries beyond COVAX,” said Ramaphosa.
“The Minister of Health is part of this Task Team and is also looking at innovative partnerships with the private sector to ensure that South Africans have access to an effective vaccine that is suitable to our conditions.”
(SOURCE: INSIDE POLITICS, Reuters)
