COVID-19 restrictions - The African Mirror

Jan

2023

China set for historic demographic turn, accelerated by COVID traumas

FARAH MASTER LIVING under China's stringent COVID-19 restrictions for the past three years had caused Zhang Qi enough stress and uncertainty to consider not having babies in the country. When China abruptly dismantled its "zero COVID" regime last month to let the virus spread freely, the balance tilted to a definite "No", the Shanghai-based e-commerce executive said. Stories about mothers and babies not being able to see doctors, as medical facilities were overwhelmed by COVID infections, were the final straw for Zhang. "I heard that giving birth at a public hospital is just horrific. I really wouldn’t consider having a baby," the…

Mar

2022

By The African Mirror

SA lifts curbs, cautions Covid-19 is not over

COVID-19

AFRICAN MIRROR REPORTER BUOYED by low infection rates and better management of the pandemic, South Africa has announced the end of the state of disaster and a significant relaxation of COVID-19 restrictions on social and economic activity. SA President Cyril Ramaphosa said the state of disaster, which was imposed with the onset of COVID-19, would be replaced by health regulations designed to help South Africans live with the pandemic. Ramaphosa announced the following changes: Masks should only be worn indoors. In office, shops and public transport.Both indoor and outdoor venues can now take up to 50 percent of their capacity…

Mar

2022

By The African Mirror

Kenya lifts remaining COVID restrictions

COVID-19

KENYA lifted its remaining COVID-19 restrictions, including a ban on large indoor gatherings such as religious services and a requirement to present a negative COVID-19 test for arriving air passengers. Though Kenyans should continue heeding public health measures such as handwashing and social distancing, face masks are no longer mandatory in public and all quarantine measures for confirmed COVID-19 cases are halted with immediate effect, Health Minister Mutahi Kagwe told a news conference. For the past month the East African country's COVID-19 test positivity rate has remained below 1%, he added, attributing this to the rising number of Kenyans opting…

Aug

2021

By The African Mirror

Rhino poaching returns to after COVID-19 lull

NEWS

RHINO poaching in South Africa rose by 50% in the first half of 2021 compared to a year earlier when poaching plummeted due to COVID-19 restrictions, according to the environment ministry. From January to the end of June 2021, 249 rhinos were poached in Africa's most industrialised economy, home to the largest white rhino population in the world, compared with 166 during the same period in 2020. "While this is higher than the number of rhino killed for their horns in the same period last year, at 166, it is less than the 318 rhino that were poached in the…

Jul

2021

By The African Mirror

SA eases COVID-19 restrictions, lifts booze ban

COVID-19

AFRICAN MIRROR REPORTER BUOYED by scientific data that show that the country is over the peak of the COVID-19 third wave, South Africa has eased restrictions, allowing for alcohol sales and public gatherings including those of religious and political nature. The downgrading of SA from lockdown alert level four to three, was announced by the country’s President Cyril Ramaphosa in a special address to the nation. Ramaphosa said the decline in the infection made it possible to ease the restrictions. He announced these new measures: Sale of alcohol will be permitted: Monday to Thursday - 10am - 6pm for off-sales…

Jul

2021

By The African Mirror

Music banned on Greece’s Mykonos in new COVID-19 restrictions

WORLD

GREECE banned music in restaurants and bars and restricted movement on its popular holiday island of Mykonos on Saturday after a rise in new coronavirus infections there. Known as the party island of the super-rich, Mykonos is one of Greece's most popular destinations, attracting more than a million visitors each summer, among them Hollywood stars, models and world-famous athletes. Following a "worrying" local outbreak, the Civil Protection Ministry said it was banning music on the island around the clock and would only allow movement between 1 a.m to 6 a.m to those going to and from work, or for health…

Jul

2021

By The African Mirror

Gyms, restaurants re-open in South Africa

COVID-19

AFRICAN MIRROR REPORTER THE South African government has, in the face of consistent rise in infections, hospitalisation and deaths, maintained the country at a strict lockdown alert level four for another 14 days, but has made minor adjustments in terms of which restaurants will be allowed to operate In a special address to the nation, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that gyms will also be allowed to operate, under strict health protocols. Sale of agricultural livestock, as well as game auctions, will also be allowed. However, Ramaphosa said the sale of alcohol will remain prohibited as well as all social, religious…

Jul

2021

By The African Mirror

England to scrap self-isolation

COVID-19

ALISTAIR SMOUT and MICHAEL HOLDEN PEOPLE who have been fully vaccinated and children will from August 16 no longer have to self-isolate after close contact with someone who tests positive for COVID-19, health minister Sajid Javid has announced. Prime Minister Boris Johnson set out plans on Monday to end social and economic COVID-19 restrictions in England on July 19, a test of whether a rapid vaccine rollout offers enough protection from the more infectious Delta variant. Javid said the success of the vaccine programme meant it was possible to go further in easing self-isolation rules for those who have received…

Jul

2021

By The African Mirror

Our little ones must go to school

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

MOSIBUDI MANGENA ALTHOUGH one has always been aware of the parlous state of our education as a result of Covid-19, it was still alarming to listen to a Stellenbosch University academic saying on TV the other day that it will take no less than ten years for learning to recover in South Africa. For almost a year now, our learners, from the kindergarten right up to university, have not had normal learning. Those in advantaged homes, have had better opportunities than their poorer counterparts through the use of technology. But even with them that is not an optimal way for…

Jun

2021

By The African Mirror

‘Brave and hopeful’ LGBT+ Rwandans prepare for their first Pride

LGBT+

KIM HARRISBERG WITH football and fashion, Rwanda's LGBT+ activists are planning their first Pride celebration after years of struggling to secure funding or a venue willing to host them in a country where they say coming out can lead to violence and rejection. Navigating COVID-19 restrictions, LGBT+ activists are expecting 200 people to attend the event in the capital Kigali in late July, including government officials and media, and hear testimonies of the stigma LGBT+ people face on a daily basis. "The significance of this event is that we are saying we are here, we need to be treated equally…