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President Cyril Ramaphosa moved the country to adjusted lockdown level 2, following a sustained decline in the number of daily Covid19 infections.
“This move is based on the advice of the medical advisory committee as well as consultations that we’ve had,” Ramaphosa said in his so-called family meeting on Sunday night.
The hours of the curfew have moved from 11 pm to 4 am, while non-essential establishments like non-essential establishments, like restaurants, bars, and fitness centres need to close at 10 pm.
Ramaphosa announced that all gatherings will now be limited to a maximum of 250 people indoors and 500 outdoors.
Funerals remain restricted to 50, with night vigils and ‘after tears’ gatherings still restricted.
Alcohol sales will be allowed from Monday to Friday and these measures will be reviewed in a fortnight.
In announcing the return to Level 2 of the lockdown, President Ramaphosa spoke at length about the safety and efficacy of the vaccine programme, urging more South Africans to get the jab.
Ramaphosa said 7 million South Africans are already fully vaccinated, saying around 1 million vaccination doses are being administered every four to five days.
The President said there was now overwhelming evidence that vaccines are safe, saying women are more open to getting the jab than their male counterparts. All people over 18 are also eligible for the jab.
In making a strong case for vaccination, Ramaphosa highlighted figures out of the Western Cape on people over 60 admitted to hospitals with Covid19 between 14 and 20 August.
He said only 30 out of 729 people above the age of 60 who were admitted to hospital for COVID-19 that week had been vaccinated, adding that of the 292 people above the age of 60 who died from COVID-19 that week, 287 were not vaccinated, meaning only five were vaccinated.
Ramaphosa said a similar pattern has emerged across the country.
The President said the government will also be providing further information on the approach on vaccine passports, with the current measures to be reviewed in two weeks’ time.
