The Zimbabwean government on Tuesday said it has decided to maintain the strictest level-four lockdown in the country despite reporting a 49.5-percent decrease in new COVID-19 infections over the past week, reported CGTN Africa.
During a post-cabinet media briefing, Zimbabwean Information Minister Monica Mutsvangwa said the number of weekly infections declined to 14,275 from 21,346. He said the declining numbers reflect the high efficiency of the country’s efforts to contain the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mutsvangwa added that it is necessary to strengthen efforts to better control the third wave of the pandemic and so the government has decided to continue with the level four lockdown measures.
The lockdown measures that would continue to remain force are a ban on inter-city travel and public gatherings, closure of bars, a limit on funeral gatherings to 30 people, and staff numbers in workstations.
About 101,711 COVID-19 infections and 3,280 deaths have been recorded in the country so far.
More than 1.5 million people in Zimbabwe have received the first jab and nearly 700,000 people have got their second dose as of Tuesday night. The vaccination numbers are far from enough to achieve the Zimbabwean government’s vaccination goal of immunizing at least 10 million of the country’s approximately 14 million people by the end of this year.
According to Mutsvangwa, two ports in the resort town of Victoria Falls, located on the border with Zambia, will be reopened for tourists who are fully vaccinated, as the famous tourist city has achieved herd immunity.
In related news, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) said the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Africa crossed 6,507,319 as of Tuesday evening.
The Africa CDC, the specialized healthcare agency of the African Union, said the death toll from the pandemic stands at 165,294 while 5,713,978 patients across the continent have recovered from the disease.
