With declining cases of COVID-19, South Africa on Tuesday ended its national state of disaster, the legal framework used for two years to impose restrictions to combat the pandemic. South African sports fans can now return to stadiums in large numbers to watch soccer, rugby and cricket matches. Sports venues can take up to 50 per cent of capacity with people who show proof of vaccination or a negative PCR test done within 72 hours. Most restrictions will be lifted, but people will be required to wear masks in indoor public spaces. International travellers must provide proof of vaccination or a negative PCR test done within 72 hours. “While the pandemic is not over, and while the virus remains among us, these conditions no longer require that we remain in a national state of disaster,” President Cyril Ramaphosa said in a nationally televised speech on Monday night. “Going forward, the pandemic will be managed in terms of the national health act.”
The government took advantage of the state of crisis to impose some of the world’s strictest COVID-19 restrictions, adding a ban on the sale of alcohol and cigarettes and a middle-of-the-night curfew. South Africa, with 60 million inhabitants, has been the most affected by the virus on the continent. More than 100,000 people have died from the disease in the country, which has recorded more than 3. 7 million infections since 2020. These official figures are sometimes thought to be significantly lower than the actual figures, as many cases of the disease they do not. They were not registered. according to fitness experts. “We will still want to cover our faces in an indoor public space. This is mandatory to prevent transmission in high-risk settings, especially when many other people are not vaccinated,” Ramaphosa said. Opposition parties, which have pressured the government to lift the state of crisis, have largely welcomed the government’s decisions. The task was also welcomed in the business and tourism sector, saying it would pave the way for the country’s economic recovery after the loss of around two million jobs due to the pandemic.
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