Author: Staff Writer
Health Minister Zweli Mkhize says the Western Cape has already seen an increase of COVID-19 positive cases of people who have not traveled abroad – which has led to an upsurge in the number of admissions to hospitals. Briefing the media in Cape Town on Friday, Mkhize said the department, therefore, is pushing to roll-out more testing especially in densely populated areas such as townships and informal settlements. He said they have already identified these sites and additional beds to augment the existing capacity as the number starts to peak to manage the outbreak. The country has recorded two…
Government is ramping up efforts to make sure that every health worker has protective gear as soon as next week. Health Deputy Minister Joe Phaahla made the assurance during a ministerial press briefing on Friday, where he said the government would be getting stock from this weekend and early next week. The health worker unions have been putting pressure on the government to provide health care workers with personal protective equipment (PPE), with Nehawu threatening to take Health Minister Zweli Mkhize to court over the matter. There were also concerns that healthcare professionals were putting their lives at risk…
Health Minister Zweli Mkhize has announced that as of Friday there are now 1 505 positive cases of COVID-19, an increase of 43 new cases from Thursday. “We also want to report that there are 2 more deaths from KwaZulu-Natal. An 80-year-old male and 81-year-old female,” said Minister Mkhize, adding that the total number of deaths now stand at 7 with 2 yet to be confirmed. Speaking at Khayelitsha Hospital on Friday, he said he would like to convey Government’s condolences to the families and friends of these individuals. “We would also like to thank the health workers who are…
FNB Connect will reduce data prices by up to 55%, in April 2020. In addition, FNB Connect will double customers’ data on their Lifestyle plans without any price increase. This weekend, FNB Connect will also be giving all its customers 1GB of free data during the national lockdown, with a validity period of 30 days. This lockdown data allocation is in addition to the Free Connect allocations that customers with qualifying transactional accounts receive monthly. Raj Makanjee, FNB Retail CEO says, “This will enable our customers to save on telco spend, which is a regular feature in household budgets. Access…
DStv Now is the online version of DStv, free to DStv subscribers. There’s also a version of DStv Now available to non-subscribers, which is proving increasingly popular during the COVID-19 lockdown. Two new channels have been added to this free service as of the beginning of April, taking the total number of channels to 16. In response to the unfolding pandemic situation, MultiChoice worked with local and international news channels in mid-March to add 24-hour news coverage to the DStv Now free service in just a matter of days. The intent was to help all South Africans stay up to…
The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country, as of Thursday, stands at 1 462. The Minister of Health, Dr Zweli Mkhize, announced the increase in cases at Universitas Hospital in the Free State, where he met with the COVID-19 task team in the province. A mass screening and testing is now underway there. Five deaths have been recorded, with two yet to be confirmed. The Free State became a hotbed for COVID-19 infections after several people, who attended a Divine Restoration Ministries church conference, tested positive. Mkhize, who attributed the restraint of the spread to the nationwide lockdown, warned…
Cargo ships and airfreight companies will be able to dock and land on South African shores to deliver essential services, Trade, Industry and Competition Minister Ebrahim Patel said on Thursday. The regulations, implemented by government during the 21-day National State of Disaster COVID-19 enforced lockdown, have been amended by Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma. “All cargo have now been allowed into the country and to be offloaded from ships. This applies to essential goods and other goods, subject to sanitising and disinfection,” said Patel at a briefing of Ministers from the COVID-19 National Command Council. Patel said…
To step up the fight against COVID-19, Broadband Infraco has partnered with ItakaneICT on a strategic alliance to bring cashless money services to rural and disadvantaged communities. Andrew Matseke, Chief Executive Officer for Broadband Infraco said the partnership will enable the deployment of payment platforms in rural communities and will help in dispensing and transacting financially without using physical cash. As the lead agency for the deployment of SA Connect, Broadband Infraco will leverage its infrastructure and backbone capability already deployed in rural communities. ItakaneICT, on the other hand, will use its platforms as mini ATM devices to drive cashless…
SA Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu) general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi has tested positive for Covid-19. He told eNCA during an interview on Thursday that he had no idea how he was exposed to the novel coronavirus. It’s true I tested positive to #CoronavirusInSouthAfrica Had a lingering flue since Friday! Felt I must act on caution & tested on Saturday but they only checked the temp which was normal.Flue persisted & Tuesday went back to the doc & insisted on proper testing – boom – positive — Zwelinzima Vavi (@Zwelinzima1) April 2, 2020 Also read: Coronavirus: South Africa Records Five COVID-19 Deaths South…
New regulations governing who may attend a funeral under the Coronavirus-enforced lockdown have been put in place by the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta). Cogta Minister Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma has gazetted further amendments to the regulations on the COVID-19 lockdown in order to flatten the infection curve. The amendments allow certain individuals to move between provinces, metropolitan and district areas for the purposes of transporting a body for burial purposes. The amendment also limits the individuals who are permitted to travel to funerals. The regulations now outline a process on how people — who wish to travel…