Pretoria News (www.pretorianews.co.za) Page 1 - Fire rages over tobacco ban
Page 4 - Gautrain back on track with reduced service at peak hours
The Star (www.IOL.co.za)
Page - Stanger Hospital closes after 16 people test positive for Covid-19 Page - This is where the 437 infections and 7 new deaths came from Business Day (www.businesslive.co.za)
Page 3 - Cape Town health workers get TB vaccine in trial to combat Covid-19 Page 4 - Experts fear underreporting of global cases
Page 4 - Defector “sorry' for saying Kim was ailing
Citizen (www.citizen.co.za)
Page 2 - Global Covid-19 Update (-Graphic Illustration) Page 2 - Food ‘won’t reach needy in time’
Page 3 - SAA plans a ‘pipe dream’
Page 3 - Minister steps in to spot harassment of long-distance travellers 연합뉴스 (www.yna.co.kr)
나이지리아 주요도시 다시 ‘시끌벅적’ … 봉쇄령 완화 보다컴, 남아공 5G 네트워크 출범…아프리카 최초
Fire rages over tobacco ban
Companies taking government to court; claim continued smoking curb not legal under Level 4 of lockdown
Pretoria News 5 May 2020 SIHLE MAVUSO
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| Jairus Mmutle GCIS
MINISTER DR Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma is not legally permitted to ban the sale of cigarettes during Level 4 of the lockdown, according to industry role-players.
ONE of the country’s associations for tobacco companies has thrown the first punch at the government, as the battle over the ban on sales of cigarettes and other tobacco products dur- ing the Covid-19 lockdown rages on.
The Fair Trade Independent Tobacco Association yesterday announced that it was taking the government to court.
It argued that the Minister for Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Dr
Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, was not legally permitted to ban the sale of cigarettes during Lev- el 4 of the lockdown.
The organisation is made up of six companies. They are Gold Leaf Tobacco Corporation;
Home of Cut Rag; Folha Manufacturers; Best Tobacco Company; Afroberg Tobacco Manu- facturing; and Carnilinx.
It yesterday served the government with court papers at the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, to challenge the decision to continue with the ban on the sale of cigarette and tobacco products during Level 4. The urgent application was filed against President Cyril Ramaphosa and Dlamini Zuma.
The association’s decision was surprising as it was expected that British American Tobacco would be the first to drag Dlamini Zuma to court after issuing a threat last week.
According to the association’s chairperson, Sinenhlanhla Mnguni, the decision to go to court was not taken lightly.
“We are relying on a number of legal principles in order to challenge this ban on the sale of cigarettes. We feel it is not lawful in the sense that the legislation which governed the lock- down period does not permit for the government to take such a step.
“Now obviously that would be left to the legal representatives to make out a case as far as this is concerned. We are merely exercising our constitutional right as law-abiding citizens…
we respect the rule of law,” Mnguni said.
Department spokesperson Lungi Mtshali did not respond when asked, among other questions, whether they would oppose the legal action or not.
The Presidency has not indicated if it will oppose the application or not.
British American Tobacco also did not respond when asked whether it would go ahead with its threat and take the government to court.
Several civil society organisations have welcomed the government’s decision to uphold the ban on tobacco sales, agreeing that tobacco use can worsen the progression of Covid-19.
In a joint statement, the organisations, which include the Heart and Stroke Foundation of South Africa, said banning tobacco sales will reduce tobacco consumption, thereby reducing the burden of severe cases of Covid-19 on the health system. “This decision by the govern- ment will help to reduce the impact of the pandemic by reducing the severity of disease in smokers who contract Covid-19.
“This decision will also reduce the demand on the health system by reducing the number of severe cases of Covid19 that it has to treat,” they said.
Using his weekly newsletter, Ramaphosa yesterday rebutted the assertion that Dlamini Zuma had acted like a de-facto prime minister and overruled him after he initially told the country that level 4, which kicked in on May 1, would see the ban on cigarette sales lifted. He said there had been much public comment on the government’s decision to extend the prohibition on the sale of tobacco products into level 4. He added it was expected a decision like this was bound to be controversial, but it was wrong to suggest there were ministers or a president do- ing and saying whatever they wanted on the matter.
“This was based on the view of the National Coronavirus Command Council, which was con- tained in the draft framework that was published for consultation. After careful consideration and discussion, the command council reconsidered its position on tobacco. As a result, the regulations ratified by Cabinet and announced by Minister Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma on April 29 extended the prohibition. This was a collective decision and the public statements by both myself and the minister were done on behalf of, and mandated by, the collective I lead,”
Ramaphosa said. He stressed that every regulation the government has put in place has been carefully considered.
Gautrain back on track with
reduced service at peak hours
Pretoria News 5 May 2020 ANNA COX
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JACQUES NAUDE African News Agency (ANA) ANA REPORTER
THE Gautrain is back on its tracks, albeit with limited services and strict conditions. | THE GAUTRAIN has resumed a reduced service for passengers during peak hours.
The fast train has not been operating since the start of the lockdown.
Kesagee Nayager, spokesperson for the Gautrain, said in keeping with government regula- tions, the trains would operate daily between 5.30am and 9.30am and from 3pm to 7pm so that passengers would be able to return to their homes by 8pm.
On Monday to Friday, trains will operate at 20-minute intervals and on weekends and public holidays, they will operate at 30-minute intervals.
The revised train and bus schedules will be available on the Gautrain website and app.
“The safety and well-being of our employees and passengers remain of paramount impor- tance to us and we have therefore taken great care to implement numerous precautionary measures to ensure that we avoid the spread of Covid-19,” said Nayagar.
Some of these measures include mandatory use of face masks, physical distancing, regular cleaning and disinfection of coaches and daily screening of staff.
The company is in the process of procuring harmless disinfecting spray booths which will be installed at the entrance to each station. Passengers will be required to walk through the spray booth entering the station.
The airport service will remain suspended until further notice.
A limited Gautrain bus service will be available from this week. Buses will not operate over weekends and on public holidays.
Some of the bus routes have been amended to allow buses to now stop at hospitals that are in close vicinity to the Gautrain alignment.
“By amending these bus routes, we are able to assist in transporting the medical services per- sonnel working at these hospitals.”
For detailed bus route information, visit www.gautrain.co.za.
Stanger Hospital closes after 16 people - including four doctors - test positive for Covid-19
The Star 5 May 2020 Staff reporter
Durban - General Justice Gizenga Memorial Hospital, formerly known as Stanger Hospital, will not be accepting any new patients after 16 people tested positive for Covid-19 at the hospital.
KZN Health MEC Nomagugu Simelane-Zulu said nine mothers, two babies, four doctors and one nurse had tested positive so far.
"As a Department, we are extremely concerned by these developments, and have urgently exercised our Constitutional obligation to prevent a further outbreak of the virus.
"What is of particular concern to us is the fact that these infections have taken place in spite of the hospital’s Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) measures, as well as the requisite Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) that has been made available to staff," said Simelane- Zulu.
The first known case they said involved a mother who reportedly did not disclose that her husband was one of the positive cases linked to a supermarket chain store in Ballito.
"She was housed at a boarder mothers' lodge at the hospital, where other mothers soon tested positive. We have instituted an urgent investigation by our Communicable Diseases Control and IPC experts which will seek to establish, among others, how the virus was able to spread at such a rapid rate within the hospital."
The Department said in addition a ll of the hospital’s laboratory-confirmed covid-19 positive staff and patients have been isolated, and all protocols for contact mapping, tracing, testing, quarantine and isolation have been followed, in compliance with guidelines from the World Health Organisation (WHO).
"The hospital, with 219 patients, has effectively been turned into a quarantine site. All staff and patients in the surgical ward and ICU have been tested."
The MEC said some of the staff and patients were already tested on Monday night and testing continue today.
"As a precaution, we believe it is prudent that the facility stops taking in any new patients henceforth, while the Department continues to ascertain the true extent of the challenge; as well as to allow for the decontamination of the facility. To mitigate the impact on service delivery, low risk patients will be diverted by Emergency Medical Services to the district hospitals in the district."
The Department said serious cases needing a higher level of care in medicine and surgery will be diverted to King Edward VIII Hospital.
Obstetrics and gynaecological cases requiring care at regional level will be diverted to Ma- hatma Gandhi Memorial; King Edward VIII; and RK Khan hospitals.
Chronic patients will be assessed at the gate; get issued with three months’ medical supplies;
and be down-referred to Central Chronic Medicine Dispensing and Distribution (CCMDD) sites.
The Department said alongside the ongoing investigation, a high-level outbreak response team from the Province is currently engaging with hospital management, organised labour, and other relevant stakeholders on best practice to ensure the safety of staff and patients, as well as the rendering of adequate support, and further intervention where necessary.
"We urge all hospital staff and the community of KwaDukuza at large to remain calm at this time, while the Department continues to work flat-out to minimise the public
inconvenience brought about by the current challenges. We will continue to closely monitor the situation. We wish all those who have taken ill a speedy and full recovery, and remain confident that the situation will soon return to normal," concluded Simelane-Zulu.
This is where the 437 infections and 7 new deaths came from
The Star 5 May 2020 Sihle Mlambo
Johannesburg - Seven out of every 10 new infections recorded on Monday were from the Western Cape province, data released by Health Minister Zweli Mkhize shows.
This means that 70% of South Africa’s 437 new infections came from the province which also has the most cases and deaths in the country.
The Western Cape has recorded 3362 confirmed cases since March and 64 deaths, which is almost double the amount of deaths from KwaZulu-Natal's 35 deaths, the second-most Covid-19 fatalities in the country.
In numbers, the Western Cape had 318 out of the 437 new infections and six of the seven new Covid-19 deaths were also from the province. The one other death was from KZN.
The past three days (May 2 to May 4) have seen 1269 new infections in the country and 22 deaths.
Between Saturday and Monday, South Africa also recorded its sharpest daily increases since the virus entered our shores in March.
MOST DAILY CASES
1. Sunday, May 3 - 447 new infections 2. Monday, May 4 - 437 new infections 3. Saturday, May 2 - 385 new infections
Mkhize said they were sending their condolences to the families who had lost loved ones.
“We wish to express our condolences to the families of the deceased and thank the health care workers who treated these patients,” said the minister.
HOSPITAL BURDEN
Mkhize also revealed that there were 411 people who had been hospitalized due to Covid-19.
He said this translated to about 5% of all Covid-19 patients, and he said this, so far, was con- sistent with China.
“Our mortality rate has remained stable at around 1.9% since the first death was reported.
This is below the world average which is 3.4% as estimated by the World Health Organisa- tion.
“As a reminder to all South Africans, the principle of flattening the curve is to limit the spread of the infection such that the numbers do not rise to the extent that they overwhelm the healthcare system.
“As winter sets in we will be confronted with the additional burden of influenza and other pneumonias, bronchiolitis in children, exacerbations of asthma and chronic obstructive air- ways disease and winter related trauma, like burns injuries.
“I therefore urge each and every South African to continue to play your part in easing the load on the healthcare system - stay home if you do not have to venture out, wear a mask at all times in public places, wash your hands regularly and disinfect surfaces you normally come into contact with,” he said.
The country is currently in Day 39 of its national lockdown which was instituted to curb the spread of the virus. More than one million workers returned to work from Monday under lev- el 4 lockdown regulations, which allowed more industries to operate.
But Mkhize urged these businesses to carry on taking the necessary steps to protect employ- ees from the virus.
“I also urge employers whose businesses have opened to take all the necessary measures to protect their employees,” he said.
The minister also thanked healthcare professionals for their efforts in the fight against Covid- 19.
“I salute our health professionals - our doctors, nurses, care workers, community workers, allied health professionals, medical technicians, pharmacists, porters, cleaners, laboratory technicians and all our foot soldiers in the front line of health care who continue to serve un- der these trying times,” he said.
Cape Town health workers get TB vaccine in trial to combat Covid-19
Business Day 5 May 2020 Agency Staff /AFP
Hundreds of health workers in SA were given a century-old tuberculosis vaccine on Monday in a trial to see whether the venerable formula can protect against coronavirus.
Devised at France’s legendary Pasteur Institute 100 years ago, the Bacillus Calmette Guerin (BCG) vaccine is one of the world’s oldest and most trusted immunisations.
“We vaccinated the first participant this morning,” Duncan McDonald, head of business de- velopment and marketing at clinical research organisation Task, said.
Trials started in Cape Town, where BCG booster shots were administered to 250 health-care workers. Another 250 received a dummy formula, or placebo.
“There are observations that this BCG vaccine does something to the immune system that we don’t really understand,” Task founder Prof Andreas Diacon said.
Children immunised with BCG tend to suffer less from respiratory illnesses, including asth- ma, he said.
“It makes the immune system cope better with respiratory tract infections,” said Diacon. “No- one actually really understands why it works.”
Diacon and his team want to determine whether BCG could have an effect on the coronavirus by reducing the risk of infection or easing symptoms. “If you can reduce the [Covid-19]
symptoms just a little, you will probably get people to survive this better or not even have to go to hospital or not even become ill,” said Diacon.
About 300,000 people contract TB in SA each year. It is one of the highest infection rates in the world, and 63,000 people die as a result, according to the World Health Organisation.
Diacon, an expert in internal medicine and pulmonology at Tygerberg Hospital and a Stellen- bosch University professor, said the trials focused on healthcare workers as “we believe that they will be exposed most”.
The plan is to ramp up the trials to up to 3,000 health-care workers in Cape Town. The partic- ipants will be observed for at least a year.
Similar BCG clinical trials are being conducted in the Netherlands, Australia and France. Par- ticipants in Australia and the Netherlands will get the vaccine for the first time as there is no policy of administering the BCG vaccine in those countries.
Experts fear underreporting of global cases
Business Day 5 May 2020
Jane Wardell Sydney
Global coronavirus cases surpassed 3.5-million on Monday and deaths neared a quarter of a million, according to a Reuters tally, reinforcing concern among experts of substantial under- reporting even as the rates of fatalities and new cases slow.
North American and European countries, where growth rates are easing, still accounted for most of the new infections reported in recent days. But case numbers were rising from small- er bases in Latin America, Africa and Russia, and experts expressed concern that the overall data may fall well short in determining the true extent of the pandemic.
Globally, there were 74,779 new cases over the past 24 hours, according to the tally of offi- cial government data, taking total cases to about 3.52-million.
That compares with about 3million to 5-million cases of severe illness caused annually by seasonal influenza, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), but falls far short of the Spanish flu, which began in 1918 and infected an estimated 500million people.
“We still have to be sceptical about the numbers we get,” Peter Collignon, an infectious dis- eases physician and microbiologist at Canberra Hospital, said. “That’ sa huge problem. The mortality rate is also 10 times higher than for influenza in all age groups.”
Cases may cause only mild symptoms and not everyone with symptoms is tested, while most countries only record hospital deaths, meaning many deaths in private homes and nursing homes have not yet been included.
Deaths related to Covid-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, stood at 246,920. The first was reported on January 10 in Wuhan, China, where the virus emerged in December.
The daily rate of new cases worldwide has been in a 2%-3% range over the past week, against a peak of about 13% in mid-March, prompting many countries to begin easing lock- down measures that have upended businesses and crippled the global economy.
The loosening of restrictions has proved controversial, however, as experts debate the best strategy to ensure there is no large “second wave” outbreak.
“We could easily have a second or a third wave because a lot of places aren’t immune,” Col- lignon said, noting that the world is well short of herd immunity, which requires about 60%
of the population to have recovered from the disease.
Health officials have also expressed concern about the rising case numbers in countries with a shortfall in testing and a dearth of medical facilities.
WE COULD EASILY HAVE A SECOND OR A THIRD WAVE BECAUSE MANY PLACES AREN’T IMMUNE. THE WORLD IS WELL SHORT OF HERD IMMUNITY
While the number of new cases has come off a peak of 104,495 reported in a single day last week, it is still at about 75,000 to 90,000 cases per day globally.
In the US, about half the country’s state governors partially reopened their economies at the weekend, while others, including New York governor Andrew Cuomo, declared that the moves were premature.
In Britain, Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who battled Covid-19 in April, said on Sunday the country is over the peak but it is still too early to relax lockdown measures.
Even in countries where the suppression of the disease has been considered successful, such as Australia and New Zealand which have recorded daily rates of new infections in the low single digits for weeks, officials have been cautious.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has predicated a full lifting of curbs in the country on widespread public adoption of a mobile phone tracing app and higher levels of testing.
Defector ‘sorry’ for saying Kim was ailing
Business Day 5 May 2020
Sangmi Cha, Ju-Min Park and James Pearson - Seoul
A former senior North Korean diplomat apologised on Monday after saying leader Kim Jong- un was probably so ill he could not stand, days before Kim emerged in state media chain- smoking and walking briskly at an event attended by scores of officials.
Kim disappeared from state media for weeks, sparking a flurry of speculation about his health and whereabouts, and worry about prospects for the nuclear-armed state in the event of an unexpected succession.
But on Saturday, North Korean media published photos of Kim at a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the inauguration of a fertiliser plant.
His re-emergence came as a blow to the credibility of some high-profile defectors from the North who had speculated that Kim was suffering from a grave illness or could even be dead.
One of the defectors, Thae Yong-ho, was North Korea’s deputy ambassador to Britain, where he managed secret funds for Kim.
Thae fled to South Korea in 2016 and was one of a pair of defectors elected to parliament in April.
I FEEL THE BLAME AND HEAVY RESPONSIBILITY. WHATEVER THE REASONS, I APOLOGISE TO EVERYONE
“I am aware that one of the reasons why many of you voted for me as a lawmaker is with the expectations of an accurate analysis and projections on North Korean issues,” Thae said in a statement. “I feel the blame and heavy responsibility. Whatever the reasons, I apologise to everyone.”
The other prominent defector elected to parliament, Ji Seongho, had said in a media interview he was 99% certain that Kim had died after cardiovascular surgery and an official announce- ment would come as soon as Saturday.
Ji could not be reached for comment on Monday.
He told Reuters on Friday he had received information about Kim’s death from a source he could not disclose.
He added he ran for office to bring attention to human rights abuse in the North.
South Korea’s ruling Democratic Party criticised the pair for carelessness that it said could do more serious harm than just misinforming the public.
One party member said they should be excluded from the intelligence and defence commit- tees.
Daily NK, a South Korean news outlet run by North Korean defectors, reported in April that Kim was recovering from a cardiovascular procedure, sparking international speculation about his health.
‘Food won’t reach needy in time’
NGOS: ATTEMPTS TO CENTRALISE DISTRIBUTION SLATED
The Citizen (Gauteng) 5 May 2020
Simnikiwe Hlatshaneni – simnikiweh@citizen.co.za
Additional permit for organisations already feeding the poor ‘is pointless’.
Government’s centralised food distribution plan won’t reach the desperate families on time, NGOs have warned.
Organisations trying to distribute food directly to beneficiaries have bemoaned as ill-advised attempts to centralise food parcel distribution channels.
Themba Masango, secretarygeneral of Not in My Name, said government failed to appreciate that community based organisations were better positioned to manage the food relief efforts.
“Our complaint in terms of the Covid-19 issues is that we were not happy with the statement issued on the 27th which indicates that we should come and give the food parcels to them.
We are more than capable of distributing these items ourselves because communities trust NGOs better; we know these communities better and also we need to be able to give feed- back to our donors. We cannot do that if we don’t know what happens to those donations,”
said Masango
Not in My Name has reached more than 500 families in townships around KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng since the declaration of the Covid-19 outbreak as a national disaster.
Masango observed that the additional permit now required of NGOs to distribute food parcels were pointless for NGOs which were already compliant in terms of the requirements and had been doing the same work since before the lockdown.
Logan Kruger, a 39-year-old community worker in Bloemfontein leapt into action from the onset of the lockdown, moving to increase her feeding scheme’s capacity from 400 to 600 recipients. Hot food, which was later banned, was in high demand among the very poor, who lived without electricity or running water.
“There have been challenges with government when it comes to the delivery of food parcels to the end user – the people who have remained hungry. So we have been proactive in serving those people. I have been running a feeding scheme in a predominantly poor and coloured community,” said Kruger who intensified her feeding scheme programme to assist those af- fected by the Covid-19 lockdown.
Many of the more than 600 people she helped feed lived in an informal settlement which did not have electricity or running water. This meant the majority of its inhabitants struggled to cook food even if they had some.
SAA ‘flight of fancy’
NEW AIRLINE: GOVERNMENT’S LATEST PROPOSAL IS SIMPLY IMPRACTICAL, SAY EXPERTS
The Citizen (Gauteng) 5 May 2020
Sipho Mabena – siphom@citizen.co.za
Analysts agree government’s proposal to launch a new airline from the carcass that is SA Airways is impractical considering the chequered history of the national carrier, which has cost Treasury more than R20 billion in bailouts in the past three years.
Carrier has cost Treasury more than R20bn in bailouts in the past three years.
Have plans of a new airline to replace the bankrupt South African Airways (SAA) crashed before takeoff? Some experts believe so, summing up the idea as a “pipedream” to appease unions and kick the can down the road on the debacle.
Recent reports say government is mulling over the idea of starting a new airline to replace the national carrier, which is broke and has relied on state bailouts for years.
But Guy Leitch, editor of SA Flyer Magazine, said the lack of detailed plans made it impos- sible to assess its feasibility, but a new airline out of the SAA ashes appeared impractical.
He said the plans not only made no sense but the timing for a start-up was devastating, with big international airlines struggling due to the Covid-19 crisis.
“There are huge problems with starting up an airline. To get an aircraft operating certificate can take up to 18 months,” Leitch said.
He said a committee would still have to assess the application before sending it through to aviation authorities for consideration.
Leitch said there was also the problem of the SAA brand and goodwill, which could be a big problem for potential investors.
He said the viable option was to “divide the entity into two, keep the bad accountable to par- liament and form a new airline based on pure business principles”.
The airline, which has cost Treasury more than R20 billion in bailouts over the past three years, could start shedding its more than 4 000 staff from as early as next week.
This if unions and workers do not accept a proposed severance deal, administrators trying to rescue the airline said on Sunday. Employees were reportedly officially informed on Sunday that they have been offered a seemingly final chance to sign a proposed termination of em- ployment agreement. SAA, which last made a profit in 2011, filed for bankruptcy in Decem- ber in a last-ditch effort to either save or liquidate the national carrier. Phuthego Mojapele, an independent aviation expert, said SAA had been dead for years and what remained now was a carcass.
“It died long ago … and I do not see any new airline born out of this carcass,” he said
Mojapele said the proposed airline was playing with people’s emotions, giving workers hope where there was none, and also a cheap way out for government.
“What needs to happen is looking at empowering low-cost airlines like Kulula and Mango, scale down, cut international routes and focus on regional and local flights.
“From there you can assess the situation moving forward,” he said.
Mojapele said unions were also to blame for the state of affairs at SAA, saying they kept qui- et when unqualified people were appointed to key positions and only made a noise when they wanted salary increases.
Minister steps in to stop ha- rassment of long-distance travellers
The Citizen (Gauteng) 5 May 2020
Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula has assured travellers using long-distance public transport that regulations will be amended to ensure they make it home without any stops.
“I was in communication with the Minister of Cogta (Cooperative Governance and Tradition- al Affairs) last night, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, and the Minister of Police, Bheki Cele, and today we are looking at passing a directive to enable long distance travel to be sorted out dur- ing the period of 1-7 May,” Mbalula told the media in Sandton yesterday.
This comes after several long-distance commuters were stopped by law enforcement officials after curfew.
Under the new Level 4 legislation, all those without a permit should be at home between 8pm and 5am.
A traveller tweeted the minister last night, indicating that the bus she was travelling in had been stopped in the middle of the night and was told to only resume travelling again at 5am, once the curfew had ended.
As a result, Mbalula said the department was going to address the exceptional circumstances that occur during long-distance travel.
“This is to ensure that travellers are not affected by the roadblocks and they are not stopped on the road.
“I wish to apologise to everybody who got inconvenienced by that and we are sorting out the issue so that, by the end of today, we gazette a direction that will enable long distance, partic- ularly public transport people to be catered for,” he said.
Park Station was a hive of activity yesterday as travellers rushed to get home during the win- dow period.
Siba Singqoto, 37, said he had been forced to return home to Port Elizabeth, as he could no longer afford the cost of living in Johannesburg while the company he works for is under lockdown.
“I arrived in Johannesburg in January to start work, so I was still under probation when the lockdown started.
“Due to the company being under lockdown, I have not earned any income. Because of that, I have to return home until things get back to normal,” he said.
– News24 Wire
나이지리아 주요도시 다시 '시끌벅적'…
봉쇄령 완화
의료진은 최근 확진자 급증에 우려…르완다, 나미비아 등도 록다운 풀어
!
4일 봉쇄령 완화로 다시 붐비는 나이지리아 최대도시 라고스 거리 [AFP=연합뉴스]
(요하네스버그=연합뉴스) 김성진 특파원 = 아프리카 나이지리아가 4일(현지시간) 수 도 아부자와 최대도시 라고스 등에 내려진 엄격한 이동제한을 풀었다.
로이터통신 등에 따르면 이로써 아프리카 최대 경제권인 나이지리아는 신종 코로나바 이러스 감염증(코로나19)에 대응하기 위해 지난 4주 이상 시행한 봉쇄령을 완화하게 됐다.
단, 야간 통행금지와 마스크 착용 의무화는 유지되고 주(州)간 비필수적 이동은 금지된 다. 이날 메가시티 라고스는 다시 차량과 버스 등으로 붐볐다.
사회적 거리두기는 대체로 지켜지지 않았지만, 록다운 이전과 달리 대부분의 사람이 마스크를 썼다.
이에 비해 나이지리아 중부에 위치한 수도 아부자에선 많은 영업점이 아직 문을 닫았 다. 비즈니스를 재개하기 위해선 사무실 소독, 손 세정제 비치 등의 조건을 충족해야 한 다.
학교와 예배 장소는 계속 폐쇄됐고 식당도 사갈 수 있는 음식만 허용되며 모든 문화행 사는 취소됐다.
나이지리아의 현재 누적 확진자는 2천558명이고 사망자는 87명이다. 확진자는 지난달 27일 1천273명에서 며칠 새 거의 배로 늘었다. 검사 건수는 2억 인구 가운데 1만7천566 건에 불과하다.
지난주 의문의 사망자가 폭증한 북부 카노주에선 조사 결과 대체로 사인이 코로나19로 인한 것으로 전해졌다.
나이지리아 의사협회는 최근 확진자가 급격히 늘어나는 추세인 가운데 봉쇄령을 완화 하는 데 대해 "너무 이르다"고 우려하기도 했다.
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4일 라고스 도로가 다시 교통체증을 빚고 있다.
[AFP=연합뉴스]
나이지리아와 다른 아프리카 국가들은 그러나 노동력의 85%가 비공식 부문에 고용된 상황에서 마냥 봉쇄령을 연장할 수 없는 처지다.
실제로 이날 라고스에서 다시 일을 하게 된 많은 사람이 "끊긴 생계를 잇게됐다"면서 안도의 한숨을 내쉬었다고 AFP통신은 전했다.
이날 르완다, 나미비아, 짐바브웨 등도 봉쇄령 완화조치에 돌입했다.
앞서 남아프리카공화국은 세계에서 가장 강력한 봉쇄령 중의 하나라는, 5주간의 '록다 운'을 지난 1일부터 일부 풀었고, 지난달 서아프리카 가나도 양대 도시에 내려진 3주간 의 봉쇄령을 해제했다.
그러나 3월 27일 이후 야간통행 금지를 시행 중인 케냐에선 이날 빈민가에서 36세 남성 이 그 시간에 밖에 있었다는 이유로 경찰에 의해 숨져 주민들이 항의 시위를 벌이기도 했다.
아프리카 질병통제예방센터(CDC)에 따르면 4일 기준 아프리카 누적 확진자는 4만4천 873명이고 사망자는 1천807명이다. 완치자는 1만5천179명이다.
보다컴, 남아공 5G 네트워크 출범…아 프리카 최초
요하네스버그 등 3대 도시서…코로나19 사태로 트래픽 증가하자 앞 당겨
(요하네스버그=연합뉴스) 김성진 특파원 = 이동통신업체 보다컴 그룹이 4일(현지시 간) 아프리카 최초로 남아프리카공화국 3대 도시에서 5세대 이동통신(5G) 네트워크를 출범했다고 밝혔다.
로이터통신에 따르면 보다컴은 성명에서 최근 남아공 통신규제 기관으로부터 추가로 임시 주파수 대역을 할당받아 당초 올해 중으로 예정된 5G 출범을 앞당길 수 있었다고 말했다.
보다컴은 현재 LG V50 5G 스마트폰과 화웨이 5G CPE 프로 라우터 등을 팔고 있어서 LG 스마트폰의 판매도 덩달아 증가할 것으로 예상된다.
5G 배치로 말미암아 보다컴은 지난 5주간의 봉쇄령 당시 경험했던 모바일 네트워크 트 래픽의 40% 증가와 고정 트래픽 250% 증가를 관리하는 데 보다 용이해질 것이라고 회 사 측은 설명했다.
록다운 기간 온라인 활동은 비디오 콘퍼런스에서 영화 스트리밍까지 급증했다.
5G가 적용되는 도시는 경제중심 요하네스버그, 행정수도 프리토리아, 입법수도 케이 프타운 등으로 5G 네트워크는 이동 및 고정 무선 서비스를 둘 다 지원한다.
샤밀 주숩 보다컴 최고경영자(CEO)는 "보다컴의 남아공 5G 출시는 중요한 시기에 왔 다. 신종 코로나바이러스 감염증(코로나19)으로 인한 국가재난사태 동안 우리 네트워 크 효율성을 향상하는 데 도움을 줄 것"이라고 말했다.
보다컴은 5G 사용이 가능한 스마트폰과 와이파이, 무선 라우터 등이 더 많이 보급됨에 따라 5G 서비스를 남아공 다른 지역으로 더 확대할 것으로 기대하고 있다.
