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- President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that the country will move to Level 1 at midnight on Sunday.
- This will open the country’s borders for both business and leisure travel.
- However, the president warned of a possible second wave, warning citizens to continue to observe Covid-19 protocols.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has announced that South Africa will move to Alert Level 1 of the shutdown at midnight Sunday.
This will allow larger gatherings to be allowed, along with international travel, alcohol sales allowed Monday through Friday, and the curfew moved to midnight.
In his address to the nation on Wednesday night, the president said the country had weathered the Covid-19 storm, but also warned of a possible second wave of the pandemic and called on citizens to continue to be vigilant in this regard.
READ | South Africa’s Borders Open October 1 – Here’s What You Need to Know
“It is time to return our country to a situation that is more normal, it is time to move to what we call a new normal while Covid is with us,” said the president.
Confirming some of the speculation leading up to his speech, the president said it was time for South Africa to remove many of the remaining restrictions on economic activity in the country.
Queries
Ramaphosa said the decision was made after consultations with representatives of the provincial and local government, as well as experts.
He imposed a strict lockdown in March as part of his government’s efforts to combat the spread of Covid-19, which had strict regulations and only allowed the operation of essential services.
In recent months, there has been a phasing out of the lockdown, which included revising regulations based on the government’s risk-adjusted approach to the coronavirus.
Although we have managed to control the virus through strict lockdown measures, the threat of a “second wave” of infections remains. Vital precautionary measures must be maintained to prevent a new spike in COVID-19 cases. pic.twitter.com/Onk2bHZzqe
– Presidency | South Africa ???? (@PresidenciaZA) September 16, 2020
Last week, the president himself hinted that the move to Level 1 was on the horizon in a compromise with the South African National Publishers Forum.
Social gatherings
“Social, religious, political and other gatherings will be allowed, as long as the number of people does not exceed 50% of the normal capacity of a venue, up to a maximum of 250 people for indoor meetings and 500 people for outdoor meetings free, “Ramaphosa said.
Both business and pleasure trips will be allowed from October 1, with some possible restrictions in effect for countries with high infection rates; A list is expected to be released in the next few days.
“Upon arrival, travelers must present a negative Covid-19 test result, no more than 72 hours from the time of departure,” said the president.
Travelers will be able to use a ground post, which was operational throughout the closure, as well as King Shaka, OR Tambo and Cape Town international airports.
He said that travelers, who had not taken a test before entering the country, will have to enter mandatory quarantine at their own cost.
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