President Cyril Ramaphosa has declared a national state of disaster as Corona virus cases increase in the country.
Schools will be closed from Wednesday, 18 March, and will remain closed until after the Easter weekend. To compensate, the mid-year school holidays will be shortened by a week.
Ramaphosa has instituted a travel ban on foreign nationals from ALL high risk countries.
Any person who has visited high-risk countries in the past 20 days will be denied a visa. South African citizens returning from high-risk countries will be subjected to testing and self-isolation or quarantine on return to South Africa.
President @CyrilRamaphosa briefs the nation on the Outcomes of the Special Cabinet Meeting on the #CoronaVirusSA outbreak #COVID19SA https://t.co/ihXscB28TI
— Presidency | South Africa 🇿🇦 (@PresidencyZA) March 15, 2020
Travelers from medium-risk countries – such as Portugal, Hong Kong and Singapore – will be required to undergo high intensity screening. All travelers who have entered South Africa from high-risk countries since mid-February will be required to present themselves for testing.
South Africa has 72 ports of entry in the country which are land, sea and air ports. Of the 53 land ports, 35 will be shut down with effect from Monday 16 March. 2 of the 8 sea ports will be closed for passengers and crew changes.
Effective immediately, all non-essential travel for all spheres of government outside of the Republic is prohibited. “We further discourage all non-essential domestic travel, particularly by air, rail, taxis and bus.”
Gatherings of more than 100 people will be prohibited. Mass celebrations of upcoming national days such as Human Rights Day and other large government events will be cancelled. Where small gatherings are unavoidable, organisers will need to put in place stringent measures of prevention and control.
Government is working with colleges, universities & other public facilities such as Parliament, prisons, police stations & military installations to intensify hygiene control. Visits to all correctional centres are suspended for 30 days with immediate effect.
Ramaphosa has called on all South Africans to practice “social distancing” and limit physical contact with people.
