POLL | Level 1 lockdown is here — are you ready?

President Cyril Ramaphosa announced eased lockdown regulations on Wednesday evening in his address to the nation about the state of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Ramaphosa said the cabinet met “various stakeholders and experts” before arriving at the decision to move to alert level 1 at midnight on Sunday.

He cautioned that while the new regulations allow for more movement and gatherings, South Africans must be careful as “we are still in the midst of a deadly pandemic”. 

He said the government had improved testing and contact tracing by launching the Covid alert mobile app. These measures would help contain further spread of the virus.

“The app will alert any user if they have been in close contact with any other user who has tested positive for coronavirus in the past 14 days. The app is completely anonymous and does not gather any personal information nor does it track movements or location,” said Ramaphosa.

Among eased regulations are international travel for business and leisure (restrictions to be published regarding some high-risk countries) and the sale of alcohol for home consumption will be allowed from Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm. 

The evening curfew will apply between midnight and 4am. Indoor and outdoor gatherings will be limited to 250 people and 500 people respectively. Funeral attendance has been increased to 100 people, while night vigils and sporting events remain prohibited.