Cabinet Urges Country to Adhere to Regulations in Holiday Season

Thursday, March 25, 2021 at 3:19 PM by Reeshni Chetty

- Cabinet has urged South Africans to strictly adhere to the Covid-19 regulations that have been implemented in the country

- Cabinet held a virtual meeting recently where many issues surrounding the global pandemic were discussed

- Cabinet broke the three phases of the Covid-19 vaccination programme down with dates and figures

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Cabinet held a virtual meeting on Wednesday, 24 March where various topics were discussed. One of which was the country's vaccination roll-out programme. The Coronavirus Disease Sisonke vaccination programme has been extended to 54 vaccine sites across the country.

The statement released by the government about Cabinet's virtual meeting also discussed other aspects of the country's response to the Covid-19 pandemic. The vaccination roll-out programme's different phases were discussed in more detail.

According to the statement, to date, 207 808 South Africans have been vaccinated against Covid-19.

Phase 1

Phase one will be implemented over the course of three months. It started on 17 February and is expected to conclude on 17 May. The vaccination target is 1.5 million healthcare workers across the country. Cabinet says that the Health Department is on track with the vaccinations.

Phase 2

Phase two of the vaccination roll-out programme will be implemented over the course of six months. It is expected to start on 18 May and conclude on 17 November. Over 13.3 million vulnerable groups, essential workers, occupational health and safety stream workers, media and other applicable beneficiaries will receive the vaccine in phase two.

During phase two, the vaccination sites will expand to 2 085 across the country.

Phase 3

Phase three of the vaccination roll-out programme will be implemented over the course of three months. Starting in November of this year, it is expected to continue to February 2022. This phase is in place to vaccinate everyone in the country who were not vaccinated in the previous phases. The target is 22.6 million South Africans.

Holiday season

Cabinet has called on all citizens in the country to strictly adhere to lockdown restrictions due to the upcoming Jewish Pesach holiday, Christian Easter celebrations and Islamic Ramadan celebrations. Cabinet wants South Africans to adhere to these regulations to reduce the possibility of a resurgence in Covid-19 infections thus preventing a potential third wave.

Briefly.co.za recently reported that South Africans have raised concerns about a possible increase in lockdown regulations. This follows a recent report revealed that the National Command Council (NCC) was advised to restrict gatherings to 50 people and impose a 10pm curfew due to the Easter celebrations.

South Africans have started discussing the possibility of the country moving to Alert Level 2. The report stated that the NCC is expected to meet on Thursday. President Cyril Ramaphosa's spokesperson said the government is keeping a close eye on developments in the pandemic and economy.