President Ramaphosa in his Sunday address said that South Africa will enter level 3 lockdown with effect from June 1, 2020. It means the government will begin opening up the economy and remove a number of restrictions on the movement of people.
South Africa is utilizing a 5-level approach to limit the spread of COVID19 that has threatened to cripple Africa’s most industrialized economy. New measures will allow the sale of alcohol for home consumption only under strict conditions on specified days and for limited hours, lifting of the night-time curfew, and permitting outdoor exercise anytime during the day.
Companies will reopen under strict adherence to health standards as Ramaphosa pursues 2020 GDP growth targets. Data from Statistics South Africa in April shows that almost half of all businesses surveyed do not have enough money to continue with their operations beyond the five-week lockdown. Moodys in April blamed the nationwide lockdown for economic stagnation saying that the South African economy will contract by 2.5% in 2020.
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However, all public gatherings remain banned as with the restaurants, bars, and hairdressing salons. In addition, Ramaphosa maintained a ban on inbound and outbound flights.
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