“The number of new infections remains fairly high in comparison with previous weeks.”
THE NORTHERN Cape Department of Education is concerned about the number of Covid-19 infections that were recorded at schools in the Province this past week.
The spokesperson for the provincial Department of Education, Geoffrey van der Merwe, said on Monday that seven schools were closed to allow for contact tracing and disinfection of school premises.
“A total of 410 new Covid-19 cases were reported during the past week at schools across our Province,” said Van der Merwe. “The number of new infections remains fairly high in comparison with previous weeks.
“The new Covid-19 infections include 28 educators, 367 learners and 15 support staff at various schools.”
Van der Merwe added that the department was concerned about the learning losses suffered due to the sporadic closure of schools as a result of the pandemic.
“This continues to take a devastating toll on the academic performance of learners and their preparedness for the examinations. It is clear that the academic recovery will take much longer than expected, while the current reality is placing a massive strain on the entire education sector. The department is doing all that we can to support educators and learners across all grades during these difficult times.”
The national Department of Health indicated that an additional 385 people had tested positive for Covid-19 in the Northern Cape on September 5, bringing the cumulative total to 84,208 infections in the Province.
The Namakwa District recorded the highest number of infections with 135 cases, followed by 96 cases in Frances Baard, 85 in ZF Mgcawu, 41 in John Taolo Gaetsewe and 26 in Pixley ka Seme. Five cases were not allocated.
One person died of Covid-19 complications in Namakwa, with the total number of Covid-19-related deaths in the Province now standing at 2,018.
The total number of active cases is 7,241, while the average recovery rate is 89 percent.
As of September 5, a total of 263,197 vaccine doses had been administered.
A total of 150,320 people in the Province have been fully vaccinated either with the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine or the second-dose Pfizer vaccine.
