We're still open in SA, says Nando's as Covid-19 closes overseas outlets

Fast-food outlet Nando's has announced the temporary closure of some its overseas restaurants amid the coronavirus pandemic, but South African fans of the food chain can breathe a sigh of relief while local stores remain open.

Nando's UK took to Twitter on Monday morning to announce the temporary closure of its restaurants there amid the pandemic. The company has around 400 restaurants in the UK, according to BBC. 

The fast-food chain tweeted a message to its UK customers, saying the "health and safety" of its customers and team is the highest priority, and as a result it has "decided the best course of action right now is to temporarily close our restaurants until further notice".

This follows a similar announcement by Nando's Malaysia last week that its restaurants would be closed for dining in and only takeaway services would be operating.

Nando's SA has not announced the closure of its local restaurants, but said it was "taking additional measures to mitigate risk for everyone".

"We would like to encourage our guests to join us in making health and hygiene a top priority.

"Our thorough health and hygiene protocol will be further bolstered during this time, with increased sanitisation of our equipment, utensils and working surfaces. Frequent hand sanitisation, in accordance with [World Health Organisation] WHO standards, is a standard operating procedure for all staff, and all our restaurants are equipped with hand-wash basins and soap for our guests’ convenience.'

Nando’s SA said it would "continue to monitor the situation closely because the well-being of our guests and staff is, and always will be, a top priority".