South Africa working on ‘final plan’ for life after the coronavirus lockdown

Cabinet held a special virtual meeting on Wednesday (15 April) to discuss the country’s socio-economic recovery plan after the Covid-19 national lockdown, but ultimately did not make a firm decision on the plans it was presented.

The meeting follows an announcement made by President Cyril Ramaphosa, who said that the cabinet would have a full discussion to come up with an economic recovery plan for the country.

Cabinet received five presentations from the various clusters, including:

• Economic Sectors, Investment, Employment and Infrastructure Development;
• Governance, State Capacity and Institutional Development;
• Social Protection, Community and Human Development;
• International Cooperation, Trade and Security;
• Justice, Crime Prevention and Security.

All the Cabinet clusters have been asked to work together to produce one consolidated document on key priorities of the country’s economic recovery plan, to be completed before the next cabinet meeting scheduled to take place on Monday (20 April).

Cabinet has also directed Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan to prepare an updated report on South African Airways, for discussion at the upcoming meeting. Thereafter, Cabinet will finalise the country’s economic recovery plan.

“The presentations were a culmination of the work done by all the cabinet clusters, focusing on the country’s economic recovery as a consequence of the Covid-19 pandemic and the recent downgrading of South Africa by ratings agencies Moody’s and Fitch respectively,” Cabinet said in a statement.

“Cabinet resolved that further discussions and consultations are still required before the final consolidated plan is approved to be shared with the nation.”

On Wednesday (15 April), Health minister Dr Zweli Mkhize announced that South Africa has seen an increase in coronavirus cases, with the total now up to 2,506.

Gauteng still represents the greatest number of cases in the country, accounting for 930 reported infections. This is followed by the Western Cape with 657 cases, and KwaZulu Natal with 519 cases.

The minister also announced an increase in the number of deaths, with 7 new deaths being linked to the virus. In most cases, those who died had underlying health issues, the minister said, most notably diabetes and hypertension.

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