The Western Cape has 12 688 active cases of COVID-19 as of 1pm on July 27. The province has a total of 91 180 confirmed cases and 75 595 recoveries.
The province has recorded an additional 35 deaths, bringing the total number of COVID-19 related deaths in the province to 2 897.
“We send our condolences to their loved ones at this time,” said Premier Alan Winde in a statement.
Thus far, 402 630 tests have been conducted and 1475 people have been hospitalised, with 275 in ICU or high care.
The breakdown is as follows:
July 27 marks four months since South Africa went into lockdown. Premier Alan Winde explains that within this time period, the Western Cape government has worked to prepare the province’s health and other government systems for the peak of infections.
“The Western Cape Government has taken this responsibility very seriously, and our teams have worked around the clock to make sure that this happened. This was made clear in our special budget tabled last week, where R3.05 billion was allocated to the fight against COVID-19 in the Western Cape,” said Winde.
This budget included:
– R1.8 billion to the Department of Health for personal protective equipment, temporary field hospitals, testing and screening, and additional bed capacity;
– R400 million to the Department of Transport and Public Works for the hiring of venues and the purchase of services for quarantine and isolation facilities;
– R310 million to the Department of Education for personal protective equipment, and the sanitisation of schools;
– R84 million for humanitarian relief including inter alia:
– R25.9 million to the Department of Social Development for an emergency food relief programme;
– R18 million to the Department of Education for an emergency school feeding scheme; and
– R17.8 million to the Department of Local Government for an emergency food relief programme;
– R27 million to the Department of Local Government for the coordination and implementation of the response to the pandemic in hotspots;
– R14 million to the Department of Economic Development and Tourism to support small businesses, workplace safety, and screening passengers at the George Airport; and
– R12 million to the Department of Social Development for personal protective equipment and operational support to Old Age Homes and Early Childhood Development Centres across the Western Cape.
More detailed information on the tabled budget and relevant documents, can be found on the Provincial Treasury website.
Winde continued: “I want to thank every person in our government for working so hard to make this happen. We are still in the midst of a serious pandemic, and we have a lot more work to do. But your hard work, and continuous dedication to saving lives has inspired me. Thank you!
“To our residents: I know that you are tired, and that you wish this was all over already. I also do. The reality is that the virus is going to stay with us for some time still, as there is still no vaccine. So we need to carry on changing our behaviour every day so that we keep ourselves, and our loved ones safe. I want to say a very big thank you to every single person who is doing so already. Millions of people across our province are following the golden rules and playing their part.
“To those of you who are not yet, now is the time to join in. Wear your mask, wash your hands, keep a distance, avoid touching your face, and sneeze and cough into a tissue or the corner of your arm. If we all do this, we can keep safe, and we will save lives.”
The Western Cape Government has launched a webinar series to help support the tourism sector. The Western Cape Minister of Finance and Economic Opportunities, David Maynier, has outlined that the series aims to provide support and advice on opening safely during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I am very concerned by the second unemployment pandemic taking shape in our province and country. We need to fight this pandemic with the same determination as we have COVID-19,” said Winde.
He continued: “That is why I am pleased that our Western Cape Minister of Finance and Economic Opportunities, David Maynier today announced a five-part weekly webinar series for the tourism sector that aims to provide support and advice on opening safely during the COVID-19 pandemic. This tourism webinar series is one of the many ways we are working hard to support the tourism sector, which has been hard-hit by the COVID-19 pandemic and the Alert Level 3 restrictions and is facing significant job losses in the Western Cape.”
The launch of the tourism webinar series follows the announcement on July 15 of the Tourism Product Development Fund which commits a total of R5 million to support new or existing tourism products and experiences in the Western Cape.
For further details on registering for the tourism webinars, click here.
Call for minute of remembrance in honour of all those who have gone before us:
Western Cape Minister of Cultural Affairs and Sport, Anroux Marais, with the support of the government’s Faith Based Organisations (FBO) Network and various stakeholders, has called for a minute of silence every Wednesday at 12pm in which citizens light a candle in remembrance of those who have lost their lives to COVID-19.
“As we understand that many feel overwhelmed with emotions of sadness, depression and/or anxiety with the increasing loss felt during this difficult time, we remain committed to the mental and physical wellbeing of all those we serve because it is only with compassionate will and collaborative efforts, that we will beat this pandemic,” concluded Winde.
The Western Cape Government, together with FBO Network offer bereavement and psycho-social support through the Departments of Social Development and Health across the province.
If psycho-social support is needed, please do not hesitate to contact the hotline number on 0800 220 250 to be connected to your nearest local office or visit the social development website.
For additional support, kindly contact the bereavement helpline on 082 925 5938 or 079 872 6408 or your local faith based organization for counselling as is needed.
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