South Africa’s lockdown will be extended by an two extra weeks, president Cyril Ramaphosa has announced.
In an address to the nation on Thursday night (9 April), Ramaphosa said while it is still too early to gauge the real effect of the lockdown on the spread of the coronavirus in South Africa, initial data shows that it is definitely having an impact.
Notably, the rate of daily infections has slowed from 42% per day, to 4%. However, he warned that the country was still in early days of the outbreak, and harder times were still to come.
“After careful consideration of the available evidence, the National Coronavirus Command Council has decided to extend the nation-wide lockdown by a further two week beyond the initial 21 days,” the president said.
“This means that most of the existing measures will remain in force until the end of April.”
“If we end the lockdown too soon or too abruptly, we risk an uncontrollable resurgence of the disease. We risk undoing the work done during the last few weeks,” he said.
“I have to ask you to bear these hard times for a little longer.”
The lockdown was initially expected to end on 16 April, but the end date has now been moved to the end of the month.
During this time, Ramaphosa said that testing and screening will be ramped up, and healthcare would take top priority. Most of the regulations and measures already in effect, will remain, he said.
Ramaphosa first declared the coronavirus pandemic a national disaster on 15 March, and announced a 21-day nationwide lockdown a few days later on 23 March.
While the lockdown was initially planned for 21 days, or three weeks, warnings have been coming in across different sectors that it would likely be extended.
Netcare – the country’s largest healthcare provider – previously warned that the lockdown could be extended to the end of May; while preliminary research by Boston Consulting Group pointed to various scenarios, some of which saw the lockdown extended for two to four months, depending on many variables.
Lockdowns have been extended in every country that implemented them, and have proven to be effective in stopping the spread of the virus.
However, South Africa is in a particularly volatile situation with the lockdown, as its economy – which recently lost its only remaining investment grade rating by Moody’s – can ill-afford a wide-reaching shutdown in production.
“I am keenly aware of the impact this will have on our economy,” the president said. “But I know, as you do, that unless we take these difficult measures now, unless we hold to this course for a little longer, the coronavirus pandemic will engulf, and ultimately consume, our country.
“We all want the economy to come back to life, we want people to return to work, we want our children to go back to school, and we all want to be able to move freely again,” Ramaphosa said.
While the banks, financiers and billionaires have put forward funding to assist struggling businesses and employees during this time, the longer the lockdown is in effect, the worse the situation becomes for workers.
According to the South African Reserve Bank’s estimates, over 370,000 people are expected to be jobless after three weeks – while economists are more bearish on the situation, pointing to 1 million jobs lost, or 1.6 million in an extended lockdown scenario.
Intellidex analyst, Peter Attard Montalto said that in a three-week lockdown, South Africa’s funding shortfall would be R119 billion. In a nine-week lockdown, this would escalate to around R350 billion.
Economic impact aside, Ramaphosa made it clear that the alternative would be worse for the country – having the virus rapidly spread among the population, crippling the healthcare system in the process, would be a catastrophe.
“Our decision to institute a nationwide lockdown was the correct one,” he said.
“We will use the coming days to evaluate how we will embark on risk-adjusted measures that can enable a phased recovery of the economy, allowing the return to operation of certain sectors under strictly controlled conditions.”
For information as to how Relocation Africa can help you with your Mobility, Immigration, Research, Remuneration, and Expat Tax needs, email info@relocationafrica.com, or call us on +27 21 763 4240.
Sources: [1], [2]. Image sources: [1], [2].
South Africa’s Lock-down Extended by 2 Weeks
South Africa’s lockdown will be extended by an two extra weeks, president Cyril Ramaphosa has announced.
In an address to the nation on Thursday night (9 April), Ramaphosa said while it is still too early to gauge the real effect of the lockdown on the spread of the coronavirus in South Africa, initial data shows that it is definitely having an impact.
Notably, the rate of daily infections has slowed from 42% per day, to 4%. However, he warned that the country was still in early days of the outbreak, and harder times were still to come.
“After careful consideration of the available evidence, the National Coronavirus Command Council has decided to extend the nation-wide lockdown by a further two week beyond the initial 21 days,” the president said.
“This means that most of the existing measures will remain in force until the end of April.”
“If we end the lockdown too soon or too abruptly, we risk an uncontrollable resurgence of the disease. We risk undoing the work done during the last few weeks,” he said.
“I have to ask you to bear these hard times for a little longer.”
The lockdown was initially expected to end on 16 April, but the end date has now been moved to the end of the month.
During this time, Ramaphosa said that testing and screening will be ramped up, and healthcare would take top priority. Most of the regulations and measures already in effect, will remain, he said.
Ramaphosa first declared the coronavirus pandemic a national disaster on 15 March, and announced a 21-day nationwide lockdown a few days later on 23 March.
While the lockdown was initially planned for 21 days, or three weeks, warnings have been coming in across different sectors that it would likely be extended.
Netcare – the country’s largest healthcare provider – previously warned that the lockdown could be extended to the end of May; while preliminary research by Boston Consulting Group pointed to various scenarios, some of which saw the lockdown extended for two to four months, depending on many variables.
Lockdowns have been extended in every country that implemented them, and have proven to be effective in stopping the spread of the virus.
However, South Africa is in a particularly volatile situation with the lockdown, as its economy – which recently lost its only remaining investment grade rating by Moody’s – can ill-afford a wide-reaching shutdown in production.
“I am keenly aware of the impact this will have on our economy,” the president said. “But I know, as you do, that unless we take these difficult measures now, unless we hold to this course for a little longer, the coronavirus pandemic will engulf, and ultimately consume, our country.
“We all want the economy to come back to life, we want people to return to work, we want our children to go back to school, and we all want to be able to move freely again,” Ramaphosa said.
While the banks, financiers and billionaires have put forward funding to assist struggling businesses and employees during this time, the longer the lockdown is in effect, the worse the situation becomes for workers.
According to the South African Reserve Bank’s estimates, over 370,000 people are expected to be jobless after three weeks – while economists are more bearish on the situation, pointing to 1 million jobs lost, or 1.6 million in an extended lockdown scenario.
Intellidex analyst, Peter Attard Montalto said that in a three-week lockdown, South Africa’s funding shortfall would be R119 billion. In a nine-week lockdown, this would escalate to around R350 billion.
Economic impact aside, Ramaphosa made it clear that the alternative would be worse for the country – having the virus rapidly spread among the population, crippling the healthcare system in the process, would be a catastrophe.
“Our decision to institute a nationwide lockdown was the correct one,” he said.
“We will use the coming days to evaluate how we will embark on risk-adjusted measures that can enable a phased recovery of the economy, allowing the return to operation of certain sectors under strictly controlled conditions.”
For information as to how Relocation Africa can help you with your Mobility, Immigration, Research, Remuneration, and Expat Tax needs, email info@relocationafrica.com, or call us on +27 21 763 4240.
Sources: [1], [2]. Image sources: [1], [2].
Ursula Vance, our Operations Manager, is Relocating
After an incredible 9 years with the Relocation Africa Group, Ursula Vance, our Operations Manager has decided it is time to return to her home – Ireland.
As of 1st March 2020 the areas of responsibility have been reallocated, as Relocation Africa has a new organogram chart (below), which means we no longer have an Operations Manager. We are sad to lose Ursula and we wish her well in her endeavors in Ireland, but we know we have a lifelong friend.
For information as to how Relocation Africa can help you with your Mobility, Immigration, Research, Remuneration, and Expat Tax needs, email info@relocationafrica.com, or call us on +27 21 763 4240.
Sources: [1], [2]. Image sources: [1], [2].
BUSA Statement on SA Moody’s Downgrade
The below statement was published by Business Unity SA.
Business Unity SA (BUSA) notes with dismay the decision by Moody’s Investors Service to downgrade SA to “junk status”.
It is an indictment on our country that BUSA needs to say this is not unexpected. Moody’s was the last of the major rating agencies to rate SA above junk status and had been indicating for some time their concerns about our lack of economic growth, bloated public expenditure, state of our SOE’s, our inability to make necessary structural changes in the economy and our labour market structure.
This rating downgrade comes at a time that the country is in the midst of pulling all its resources and capacity together to mitigate the impact of Covid-19 across economic, social and health sectors. The country’s resources and capacity are being stretched in addressing this extraordinary situation and the downgrade opens another major challenge for SA.
This is not the time for pointing fingers or starting blame games. We need to concentrate all the resources and capacity of our country towards the compact that is coming together to beat this virus. We recognise the urgency with which SA must respond to the Moody’s downgrade, but we do, as a country, need to mitigate the immediate economic impact of Covid-19.
If we fail in our endeavours to mitigate the negative impact of Covid-19 on our economy, we will be in a far worse position to resuscitate our economy post the Covid-19 crisis, thus making it virtually impossible to rebuild our economy to be rated again as investment grade.
So, we must commit to working together to deal with Covid-19, but also commit to work together to rebuild our economy post Covid-19. In making such commitment, the following remains pertinent and critical:
• Necessary structural changes in the economy
• The bloated public sector expenditure
• The wastage of scarce resources into SOE’s and other state structures that have no potential to deliver either social or economic returns
• Accelerating the processes at ESKOM to restructure the organisation so that it is fit for purpose and plays a critical role in a diversified energy generation and distribution environment. This includes urgently addressing the energy mix, accelerating the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producers Procurement Programme (REIPPPP) and implementing the Integrated Resource Plan (IRP)
• Ensuring legislation that erodes investor confidence is not considered or implemented
• Ensuring a single cohesive message from government, which must be that the most critical issue for SA is to do everything necessary to be rated again as an investment grade country, with this being the only focus.
We have come together as a country in the last few weeks to fight the Covid-19 outbreak. This “compact” must form the platform from which we now address the crisis of the downgrade. We have now got to channel all our resources and capacity to addressing these two crises. The critical component for this is decisive and urgent leadership from the President, his Cabinet and government. BUSA stands ready to work with stakeholders under such leadership.
For information as to how Relocation Africa can help you with your Mobility, Immigration, Research, Remuneration, and Expat Tax needs, email info@relocationafrica.com, or call us on +27 21 763 4240.
Sources: [1], [2]. Image sources: [1], [2].
United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) Partners with Private Sector Players to Reach the Last Mile with Digital Services
Goal is to enable 1 Million Rural Ugandans to use Digital Services
The United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) announced partnerships with digital services providers aimed at increasing access to and usage of digital services in the North and West Nile regions of Uganda. Through this partnership, UNCDF is supporting private sector players to develop and scale digital solutions for communities that are often marginalized and denied digital innovation and technology due to social norms, societal status, and limited revenue and capacity.
The partnership is part of the ‘Leaving No One Behind in the Digital Era,’ strategy, funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), which aims to build an inclusive digital economy in Uganda. The programme focusses on empowering rural communities to use digital services in their daily lives for development impact in agriculture, health, education, and finance.
“In line with our strategy of ‘Leaving No One Behind in the Digital Era’, the partnerships aim at breaking the obstacles that limit the reach of digital services in rural communities. Our goal is to enable at least one million people in rural communities of Uganda to use digital services that will empower them to lead productive and healthy lives while at the same time contributing to achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals”. Jenifer Bukokhe Wakhugu, Deputy Head of Office at UNCDF Uganda.
While the overall number of people accessing digital products and services in Uganda continues to grow, the digital access gap is widening, negatively impacting routinely excluded populations: rural communities, smallholder farmers, women, youth, MSMEs & refugees. Over the last four years, the Ugandan digital financial market has grown from 26% of the adult population actively using digital financial services in 2014 to roughly 56% in 2019. However, in rural communities, such as the Northern and West Nile Regions of Uganda, access to mobile digital financial services lags behind at dismal levels, at less than 30%.
To bridge this gap, UNCDF is partnering with mobile network operators (MNOs), Airtel Uganda and MTN Uganda, to increase mobile phone penetration, strengthen the rural agent network, improve liquidity, optimize connectivity across the target areas, and develop relevant and affordable products for rural communities.
UNCDF is also partnering with agri-techs, Ensibuuko Tech Limited and MobiPay Agrosys Limited, to create a network of digital community entrepreneurs (lead farmers) aimed at increasing last mile distribution of digital inclusion related services and products such as phones, off-grid energy solutions, bank accounts, farming inputs, and electronic airtime. Additionally, we are leveraging these partnerships to teach financial & digital literacy skills, with the aim of building and fostering an open payment ecosystem that empowers these communities.
“Through these partnerships, we aim at building the digital infrastructure in the rural communities to pave the way for digital technologies that will remove the major market constraints in agriculture, education and health, while at the same time creating impact in entire market systems.” Ms. Bukokhe added.
For information as to how Relocation Africa can help you with your Mobility, Immigration, Research, Remuneration, and Expat Tax needs, email info@relocationafrica.com, or call us on +27 21 763 4240.
Sources: [1], [2]. Image sources: [1], [2].