744 new Covid-19 infections reported in wake of 21 new deaths in SA

File Picture; REUTERS/Francis Mascarenhas TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

File Picture; REUTERS/Francis Mascarenhas TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

Published Apr 19, 2021

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Durban - South Africa has reported 744 new cases of Covid-19, taking the cumulative number of cases in the country to 1 567 513, according the Department of Health.

A total of 21 more Covid-19 related deaths have been reported as of Monday night.

Of the 21 deaths that have been reported, KwaZulu-Natal accounted for one, Gauteng 1, the Free State 2, the Eastern Cape 10, Mpumalanga 3 and Western Cape 4.

The North West and the Northern Cape reported 0 deaths.

This takes the total number of Covid-19 related deaths to 53 757.

The cumulative number of recoveries currently stands at 1 490 876 representing a recovery rate of 95%.

According the Department of Health, s 10 355 196 tests have been conducted - 18 130 since the previous day’s report.

After remaining consistently below 5% for the past 3 weeks, South Africa’s daily test positivity rate has jumped to more than 9% in the past week

The Covid-19 third wave, which had been predicted to hit the country after the long Easter weekend has not yet materialised. However, scientists have noticed a slight increase in the number of new infections.

On Monday, Health Minister, Zweli Mkhize visited the Western Cape to inspect the province’s state of readiness to rollout the Covid-19 vaccination campaign.

The mass vaccination campaign, due to begin officially on 17 May 2021, and represents hope for our nation after the social, economic and psychological carnage left by Covid-19, Mkhize said in a statement last night.

“It is for this reason that I have embarked on a nationwide tour to assess the readiness of provinces to rollout the vaccines at the anticipated rate that will be required to achieve population immunity by the first quarter in 2022. I have now completed three provincial visits and, so far, feel satisfied that Gauteng, Eastern Cape and Western Cape understand the requirements and have the inclination to rise to the occasion,” he said.

The expected quarterly delivery schedule of the Covid-19 vaccination programme from the Department of Health.

Mkhize said that after being presented with the mass vaccination rollout plan for the Western Cape, he was pleased to note that the Province had given full consideration to the interventions that need to be implemented such that the province can vaccinate the nearly 5 million citizens targeted for that region.

“This (vaccination) schedule shows that, provided we receive the vaccines as committed to by the manufacturers, we will be able to vaccinate 46,2 million South Africans by the by the end of the fourth quarter, that is March 2022. This tally excludes the 500 000 that will be vaccinated under the Sisonke Protocol. We are also hopeful that COVAX will be able to deliver 1,2 million doses this quarter. We send a word of appreciation to the 343 420 senior citizens who had already registered on the EVDS as at 18.00 (on Monday) evening. We call on all South Africans to assist their friends, family and neighbours who are 60 years and older to register on the EVDS by accessing the portal online at vaccine.enroll.health.gov.za”.

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