Just In: Zimbabwe’s Lockdown Extended By A Further 14 Days
The government has extended the national lockdown due to the Coronavirus by a further two-weeks to the 3rd of May 2020.
The lockdown which started on March 30, was meant to expire today at midnight.
The announcement was made by President Emmerson Mnangagwa today during and address at the State House. He justified the lockdown extension saying that the country has not yet met the WHO guidelines for the relaxing of the lockdown conditions.
The government has reviewed the situation around us, and worldwide. The trend is clearly showing that that more and more we are now dealing with within country transmissions.
The country is yet to meet the conditions for the lifting of the lockdown, which is when the transmission of the virus is fairly under control.
Guided by these realities, government has decided to extend with immediate effect a national lockdown by a further 14 days, up to May 3, 2020,”
The president has however said the mining and manufacturing sectors will be exempt from the extension of the lockdown as they have been directed to commence/ scale up production.
Essential services will continue as normal and more security forces will be deployed to help maintain the safety of the public during the Lockdown.
The president also lamented the influx of returning citizens saying presenting a new but unavoidable challenge. Government will strengthen the testing and quarantine of these returning residents in an effort to contain the virus.
He further went on to say that of the Coronavirus is being scaled up with government working on a plan to cascade Covid-19 testing to rural health centres so that every citizen can have access to testing facilities.
Contact tracing which is necessary for containing the virus through early detection, is also being scaled up with the government aiming for a ratio of one contact tracer per four cases.
The president has said the decision to extend the lock down was a very hard but necessary one as the country seeks to flatten the curve.
Mnangagwa said he will visit rural and urban families to see how they are coping and share ideas on how to reduce the negative impacts of the lockdown.
Zimbabwe currently has 25 confirmed cases of COVID-19 with 3 deaths and 2 recoveries.
You can watch the full broadcast below.
https://www.facebook.com/zimbabwebroadcastingcorporation/videos/159890375388381/
See the latest COVid Stats here.
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