Ramaphosa – Remaining restrictions under Alert Level 1 to manage levels of infections

In his presidential briefing to the nation this evening, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that restrictions that remain under Alert Level 1 are aimed at maintaining decreased levels of infection and prevent super-spreading events.

He also updated the nation on South Africa’s vaccination campaign, stating that in the 10 days since SA launched its vaccination programme, more than 67 000 health workers had been vaccinated. Ramaphosa said cabinet decided to move the country from Alert Level 3 to Alert Level 1 which comes into effect later this evening once the regulations have been gazetted.

This means:

• The hours of the curfew will now be from 12 midnight to 4am.
• Gatherings will be permitted, subject to limitations on size, adherence to social distancing and other health protocols. These include religious, social, political and cultural gatherings.
• The maximum number of people allowed at any gathering is 100 people indoors or 250 people outdoors.
• Where the venue is too small to accommodate these numbers with appropriate social distancing, no more than 50 per cent of the capacity of the venue may be used.
• Night vigils or other gatherings before or after funerals are not permitted.
• Nightclubs will remain closed.
• The sale of alcohol will be permitted, according to normal licence provisions. No alcohol may be sold during the hours of curfew.
• The wearing of masks in public places is still mandatory, and failure to wear a mask when required remains a criminal offence.
• The 33 land border posts that have been closed throughout this period will remain closed, while the other 20 will remain open. Only five airports will be open for international travel with standard infection control measures. They are OR Tambo, Cape Town, King Shaka, Kruger Mpumalanga and Lanseria airports.

Covid-19 variant 501Y.v2

“Driven by a new variant of the virus, the second wave was far more devastating and caused greater loss of life than the first wave. The country has now emerged from the second wave. “New infections, admissions to hospital and deaths decreased and continue to decline steadily,” said Ramaphosa.

In the past week, the country recorded just under 10 000 new infections. The president reminded citizens that in the last week of January, the country recorded over 40 000 new cases. In the last week of December, SA recorded close to 90 000 new cases. “This decline over eight weeks is due to a combination of the public health measures introduced, changes in behaviour and accumulating immunity in those who became infected in our communities.”

He said SA emerged from the second wave as people adhered to tighter restrictions and basic health protocols including social distancing and wearing of masks.

“The measures put in place in December were necessary to contain infections and prevent the health facilities from being overwhelmed. As we ease restrictions, we cannot let our guard down. The few remaining restrictions under Alert Level 1 are meant to maintain low levels of infection.

“The new variant known as 501Y.v2 is now the dominant variant in the country. The new variant is transmitted more easily and has the potential to infect more people, place a greater strain on our health system and lead to a greater loss of life. Therefore, social distancing is even more critical. Wearing a mask and avoiding crowds is even more important.”

“The return to Alert Level 1 means that most of the remaining restrictions on economic activity have been removed. We expect this to lead to higher consumption spending, bolstered by the steady recovery in employment.

“We expect businesses to implement the plans they may have put on hold. As we undertake further structural reforms, this will entrench the green shoots we have begun to see in the economy.” He said the threat of a third wave is “constantly present” as is the threat of more new variants.

“As we witnessed last year, our actions as individuals and as a collective will determine whether and how soon we experience a resurgence of the virus.”

Vaccines

Ramaphosa said a new batch of 80 000 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine arrived in the country yesterday (February 27) and that all provinces have established vaccination sites. The number of vaccination sites will be increased from 17 to 49 of which 32 will be at public hospitals and 17 sites at private hospitals. It is expected that the vaccination of healthcare workers will be followed by phase two planned for late April or early May when vaccines will be administered to the elderly, essential workers, persons living or working in institutional settings and those with co-morbidities. SA also signed an agreement with Johnson & Johnson to secure a further 11 million doses.

“Of these, 2.8 million will be delivered in the second quarter and the rest spread throughout the year. We have also secured 20 million doses from Pfizer, which will be delivered from the second quarter. Additionally, we have secured 12 million vaccine doses from the Covax facility and we are in the process of finalising our dose allocation from the African Union.”

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