“To ensure that our response to the pandemic can be as precise and targeted as possible, there will be a national level and separate levels for each province, district and metro in the country.”
To illustrate this point, the Presidency has published a map of the areas which have currently reported the most number of cases across the country.
While the map does not definitively state that the highlighted areas will face stricter regulations, it does show the stark difference in reported cases across the country.
Notably, it appears that the largest number of cases have been reported in specific districts across Gauteng, the Western Cape and KZN.
This aligns with comments made Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) minister Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma – one of the key decisionmakers on the country’s lockdown regulations.
In a parliamentary meeting on Tuesday (21 April), Dlamini-Zuma said that it is unlikely that the lockdown will be eased all at once countrywide, and that there may be ‘differentiated lockdowns’ in provinces with a high number of coronavirus cases such as Gauteng, KZN, and the Western Cape.
This means that a district which has had fewer cases or a less likely chance of transmission may have different lockdown rules than a more ‘high-risk’ area, she said.
Levels
As it stands, South Africa is set to move to ‘Level 4’ of restrictions from 30 April.
The levels, which denote the level of action needed to stop the spread of the virus, are as follows:
- Level 5 – drastic measures are required;
- Level 4 – some activity can be allowed, subject to extreme requirements;
- Level 3 – the easing on some restrictions on work and social activities;
- Level 2 – further easing of restrictions, but the maintenance of social distancing;
- Level 1 – most normal activity can resume, with caution and health guidelines followed at all times.
