While South Africa may be on the other side of the Covid-19 third wave peak, recent data suggests that the rate of decline has slowed due to coastal provinces recording an increase in cases.
WHILE South Africa may be on the other side of the Covid-19 third wave peak, recent data suggests that the rate of decline has slowed due to coastal provinces recording an increase in cases.
A senior researcher at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Dr Ridhwaan Suliman, says that inland provinces are contributing to the decrease in Covid-19 cases, however, coastal provinces are still on an upward trend.
Speaking to the SABC, Suliman said the Western Cape is currently the epicentre of the third wave in the country and has been reporting over 3,100 cases on average over the past week.
“In KwaZulu-Natal, new cases have increased by 28% week-on-week and there are certainly no signs of slowing down there. I think that is something to watch for for the next couple of weeks,” he said.
Cases in the Eastern Cape have also shown an increase, he said, with the province recording a 14% increase week-on-week.
“The good news is that Gauteng, the North West, Mpumalanga and Limpopo continue on their downward trends,” said Suliman.
Nationally, the country’s seven-day moving average is still high at 21% and has been “stuck” at this level for the past four days, with the third wave having a longer tail.
South Africa recorded 6,787 new Covid-19 cases on Monday with 29% of the cases from the Western Cape, 21% from KwaZulu-Natal and 15% from Gauteng.
According to the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD), there was a 10% decrease in the number of new cases detected last week compared to the previous week.
