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For IOL reporter 
3h ago
Cape Town – South Africa will move to a level 1 lockdown with immediate effect, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced on Sunday night.
“The country has clearly outgrown the second wave,” Ramaphosa said. He attributed the decline in infections to public health measures and changes in public behavior.
Noting that the easing of restrictions should be done with caution,
This means that the curfew schedule changes from midnight to 4 a.m. and public gatherings, including social, political and religious, are again allowed, but restricted to 100 people for indoor gatherings and 250 for outdoor events. , where the place allows it.
Gatherings after funerals, commonly known as “after tears,” are not yet allowed, the president said.
Alcohol sales, for both on-site and off-site consumption, will be permitted during normal business hours prior to closing, provided it is outside of curfew hours.
The land borders that were closed during the blockade will remain so, and only five airports will be open for international flights.
Ramaphosa warned that the wearing of masks is still mandatory.
The president also winked at the country’s scientific community, which has been at the forefront of the research that is being carried out.
“Scientists and researchers in South Africa have made an important contribution to the global understanding of the virus,” Ramaphosa said.
More than 1.5 million people have been infected by Covid-19 and almost 50,000 have died from complications due to the virus.
Vaccine launch in progress
South Africa received its second shipment of 80,000 Johnson & Johnson vaccines on Saturday, and around 67,000 front-line health workers have already been vaccinated to date. However, at least 40 million people will need to be vaccinated before South Africa can hope to achieve herd immunity.
The government has secured 11 million doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine and 20 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine and is in the process of obtaining 12 million doses of Covax vaccine, Ramaphosa said.
According to Professor Ian Sanne, although the Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson vaccines have been found to be effective against the dominant variant of Covid-19 in South Africa, the logistics involved in storing and transporting the two vary drastically.
The Pfizer vaccine should be kept between -80ºC and -60ºC, Salle said.
The country has been on lockdown for 11 months after the first local Covid-19 case was confirmed on March 5.
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