by TINTSWALO BALOYI
JOHANNESBURG, (CAJ News) – LIKE it overcame the HIV/AIDS scourge and other hardships in the past, South Africa will defeat the third wave of the coronavirus.
This is according to President Cyril Ramaphosa as the country contends with the worst outbreak of the pandemic in the African continent.
South Africa also has the biggest HIV epidemic in the world, with 7,7 million people living with HIV.
The prevalence among the general population is high at more than 20 percent.
“As South Africans, we have experienced pandemics before, most notably HIV/AIDS,” Ramaphosa stated in his weekly letter to the nation on Monday.
“We have managed to reduce new HIV infections by more than half since 2010. Our people know that we can control contagions, but it requires all of us to act together over time. It is not a task only for the vulnerable or the healthcare system.”
Ramaphosa retold the country had experienced many hardships in the past.
“However, we overcame them by understanding the challenges we faced, developing appropriate strategies, and implementing them together. As we have done before, we need to work as one to prevent infections and reduce the effects of this virus on us.”
The climb in new COVID-19 cases has been rapid and steep over the past few weeks.
The number of daily new cases jumped from below 800 in early April to over 13 000 in the past week.
South Africa has recorded 1 823 319 cases, including 58 702 deaths as of the beginning of this week.
– CAJ News