1 July 2020

Today, Western Cape Premier Alan Winde will hold a digital press conference over Microsoft Teams which will provide an update on the epidemic in the Western Cape and the health system’s response.

Premier Winde will be joined by Health Minister Nomafrench Mbombo ,Health HOD Keith Cloete and Professor Andrew Boulle.

Members of the media must please note the time change from the regular time slot for tomorrow’s digicon.

Date:  2 July 2020

Time:  12.30pm

Digital platform: Microsoft Teams

 Please confirm your attendance by 9am tomorrow and provide your name, surname, the name of your publication and your email address to be added to Microsoft Teams.  We will provide you with a meeting invite to the briefing, upon your confirmation. Only those who have confirmed attendance will be admitted.

1 July 2020

As of 1pm on 1 July 2020, the Western Cape has 17 019 active cases of COVID-19, with a total of 63 816 confirmed cases and 44 938 recoveries.

Sub Districts Cape Town Metro:

Sub-districts:

Unallocated: 6431 (3170  recoveries)

Data note: As the province moves closer to the peak and the Department of Health is recording over 1000 new cases daily, it is not possible to check and verify that the address data supplied for each new case is correct, within the time frames required to provide regular and timely updates. This means that in some instances, cases could be allocated to the wrong sub-districts. We are working with the sub-districts to clean and verify the data and where errors are picked up locally, cases will be re-allocated to the correct areas.

More data is available here: https://coronavirus.westerncape.gov.za/covid-19-dashboard

The Western Cape has recorded an additional 35 deaths, bringing the total number of COVID-19 related deaths in the province to 1859. We send our condolences to their loved ones at this time.

Today’s online dashboard reflects 1854 deaths- however this is an error due to a data feed issue. The correct number is 1859 as reflected above.

Brackengate:

Today, I went on a site inspection of the Brackengate temporary hospital, which has officially been handed over from the Department of Transport and Public Works to the Department of Health.

All construction is now complete, and the Department of Health team are busy installing beds, and ensuring that all the systems are functioning and in place to receive their first patients on 10 July.

This 330 bed intermediate facility will provide medical care including oxygen, x-rays, and sonar for patients who are on the way to recovery but still need medical care. It also contains eight beds where high flow oxygen treatment can be administered.

The design flow of the facility, its paperless systems and its waste management system are all designed to reduce the risk of infection on site.

The IT system will also allow patients to video call their families and loved ones as visitors are not allowed.

This will be the province’s third completed field hospital- after the Khayelitsha Thusong hospital and the CTICC Hospital of Hope.

The facilities allow us to still provide care to those who need it, while opening up acute care beds in our hospitals.

While the other two are not close to reaching capacity, opening up these sites allows us to also ensure that we are able to spread out the patient load, and ensure that the staff in any one facility do not become overwhelmed.

Today, the Department of Health also launched its Bed Bureau- an online bed management tool which allows them to track how many beds are available in any of our facilities and ensure that we are able to effectively and efficiently manage admissions and patient transfers.

I would like to extend my thanks to all of the people involved in bringing this project to fruition, who have worked long hours, with tight deadlines to ensure that we are able to provide hospital beds and care when they are needed.

I also want to send my thanks to the healthcare workers, from the doctors and the nurses to the technicians, pharmacists, porters, cooks and cleaners who will be working to make this hospital, and all of our other hospitals and healthcare facilities, beacons of hope and recovery. Your selflessness and your service to the people of this province must be applauded.

First Thursday:

Tomorrow, I will be back in studio at Bush Radio for a live First Thursday Q and A between 6 and 7pm.

When I became Premier, I committed to an open government with regular opportunities to engage me and members of my executive. While COVID-19 means it will be a while before we can host events again, our regular radio slot still allows me the opportunity to engage with members of the public and respond to questions and issues.

I invite everyone to listen in- either on Bush Radio or one of the simulcast stations, or to the live stream on my Facebook page.

You can call in on 021 448 6266, WhatsApp on 061 862 1065 or SMS keyword Covid-19 to 32158 followed by your question, name and area. Each SMS costs R1.00.

30 June 2020

As of 1pm on 30 June, the Western Cape has 15 819 active cases of COVID-19, with a total of 62 157 confirmed cases and 44 514 recoveries.

Sub Districts Cape Town Metro:

Sub-districts:

Unallocated: 5884 (3066  recoveries)

Data note:  As the province moves closer to the peak and the Department of Health is recording over 1000 new cases daily, it is not possible to check and verify that the address data supplied for each new case is correct, within the time frames required to provide regular and timely updates. This means that in some instances, cases could be allocated to the wrong sub-districts. We are working with the sub-districts to clean and verify the data and where errors are picked up locally, cases will be re-allocated to the correct areas.

More data is available here: https://coronavirus.westerncape.gov.za/covid-19-dashboard

The Western Cape has recorded an additional 49 deaths, bringing the total number of COVID-19 related deaths in the province to 1824. We send our condolences to their loved ones at this time.

Donation from the Chinese Consul General:

Today, I received a donation of personal protective equipment (PPE) from the Chinese consul General, Mr Lin Jing (see attached photo).

The donation consists of:

30,000 surgical masks;

5000 N95 masks;
500 isolation gowns and​

500 face shields

This donation will help to bolster our available stocks of PPE, ensuring that we have even more supply for the healthcare workers who are fighting COVID-19 on our frontlines.

We thank the Chinese Consulate, and the Chinese government for partnering with us in our fight against COVID-19 and for their ongoing relationship with the Western Cape.

Masks for the elderly:

The Department of Social Development has distributed 105 000 donated masks to various old aged homes in the province. The Department has so far been able to distribute a total of 120 000 masks to homes in the province.

The donations have supplemented the extra support given by the Department of Social Development to facilities, to assist in the fight against COVID-19.

We thank the many generous donors who have made these donations to the Western Cape Government and the Department of Social Development, which has allowed us to provide additional protection to this high risk group.

Fake news:

A number of new fake news messages are once again circulating on social media networks, which are designed to spread fear and confusion among members of the public and parents of children returning to school.

COVID-19 is a serious pandemic which should be treated as such, however, using false information that creates panic, or which is designed to take advantage of vulnerable citizens, is irresponsible and does not help in the fight against this virus.  Information coming from unknown or unnamed sources should be carefully checked and verified before sending it on.

Use official government channels, such as the Western Cape, and the South African Government websites and social media channels, and trusted news websites for information.

You can also report fake news by Whatsapping it to 067 966 4015.

MEDIA RELEASE BY DAVID MAYNIER
WESTERN CAPE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES

Date: 30 June 2020
Release: immediately

Minister Kubayi-Ngubane to urgently confirm accommodation for leisure can open

The Minister of Tourism, Mmamoloko Kubayi-Ngubane, needs to urgently confirm that accommodation for leisure at licensed and accredited establishments is permitted under Alert Level 3.

At a press conference on Friday, 26 June 2020, Minister Kubayi-Ngubane stated that “accommodation for leisure is not yet allowed”. However, a careful reading of the amended Alert Level 3 regulations makes it clear that licensed and accredited accommodation establishments are allowed to operate for intra-provincial (within province) travel and are no longer restricted to only accept business travellers or persons requiring quarantine and isolation, and that travel for leisure purposes within one’s province is permitted.

This view is also shared by industry bodies, Tourism Business Council of South Africa (TBCSA) and Southern African Tourism Services Association (SATSA). (Read related statement)

The tourism sector has been one of the hardest hit by the Covid-19 crisis and allowing accommodation for leisure to open safely under Alert Level 3 will help to minimise further job losses and will accelerate industry recovery in the Western Cape.

We cannot afford the confusion, and so we call on the Minister of Tourism, Mmamoloko Kubayi-Ngubane, to urgently clarify and confirm that the regulations do indeed permit accommodation for leisure purposes.

The tourism sector has already done a great deal of work to develop health and safety guidelines and protocols aimed at ‘de-risking’ the sector.

We also firmly believe that there are further aspects of the sector that can open safely under Alert Level 3, such as parks, beaches and other open-air and outdoor tourism attractions, and so we will continue to engage actively with the sector to assist them to put these safety measures in place.

Notes for media:
To read the statement online visit: https://www.westerncape.gov.za/news/minister-kubayi-ngubane-urgently-confirm-accommodation-leisure-can-open

Media Queries:
Francine Higham
Spokesperson for the Provincial Minister of Finance and Economic Opportunities
(Responsible for the Provincial Treasury and the Department of Economic Development and Tourism)
Tel: 021 483 4327 / Cell: 071 087 5150 / Email: francine.higham@westerncape.gov.za

29 June 2020

As of 1pm on 29 June, the Western Cape has 16 550 active cases of COVID-19, with a total of 61 445 confirmed cases and 43120 recoveries

Sub Districts Cape Town Metro:

Sub-districts:

Unallocated: 5900 (2847 recoveries)

Data note:  As the province moves closer to the peak and the Department of Health is recording over 1000 new cases daily, it is not possible to check and verify that the address data supplied for each new case is correct, within the time frames required to provide regular and timely updates. This means that in some instances, cases could be allocated to the wrong sub-districts. We are working with the sub-districts to clean and verify the data and where errors are picked up locally, cases will be re-allocated to the correct areas.

More data is available here: https://coronavirus.westerncape.gov.za/covid-19-dashboard

The Western Cape has recorded an additional 38 deaths, bringing the total number of COVID-19 related deaths in the province to 1775 . We send our condolences to their loved ones at this time.

Temporary hospital update:

The Western Cape has, as part of its COVID-19 preparedness strategy, built temporary hospitals which will increase the number of  hospital beds available in the province.

Work is well-underway at the Brackengate temporary hospital, and the 330 bed temporary hospital is on track to receive its first patients on 10 July (see photo attached).

Much like the CTICC hospital, this site will provide intermediate hospital care to patients, and has been designed with infection prevention in mind- with a state of the art waste management facility in place to destroy infectious waste.

We have invited national Health Minister Zweli Mkhize to visit the Western Cape again on Wednesday and will be showcasing the facility to him before the hospital becomes fully functional.

Work on the Sonstraal facility in the Cape Winelands is also underway with the first phase, creating an additional 63 beds, set to start accepting patients in the first week of July.

These are in additional to two already completed and functional facilities- the Hospital of Hope at the CTICC and the Thusong hospital in Khayelitsha, operated by Medicins sans Frontiers, in partnership with the provincial government.

Breaking Barriers Community Outreach in Athlone

Today I had the opportunity to visit the Breaking Barriers Community Outreach centre in Athlone. This centre provides an amazing resource to the surrounding community, relying mostly on donations to do the work that they do. They offer sewing and welding skills training for young people, and every day, prepare massive pots of soup that feed thousands of people in the community.

I was also able to meet some of the young people who are not only learning at the outreach, but also volunteering, helping to prepare meals and giving back.

This organisation has been operational in Athlone for a number of years, but as COVID-19 has exacerbated the need for humanitarian aid, is now playing an important role helping the people in their community.

25 June 2020

As of 1pm on 25 June, the Western Cape has 15 251 active cases of COVID-19, with a total of 56 345 confirmed cases and 39 475 recoveries.

Sub Districts Cape Town Metro:

Sub-districts:

Unallocated: 4381 (2377 recovered)

Data note:  As the province moves closer to the peak and the Department of Health is recording over 1000 new cases daily, it is not possible to check and verify that the address data supplied for each new case is correct, within the time frames required to provide regular and timely updates. This means that in some instances, cases could be allocated to the wrong sub-districts. We are working with the sub-districts to clean and verify the data and where errors are picked up locally, cases will be re-allocated to the correct areas.

More data is available here: https://coronavirus.westerncape.gov.za/covid-19-dashboard

The Western Cape has recorded an additional 54 deaths, bringing the total number of COVID-19 related deaths in the province to 1619. We send our condolences to their loved ones at this time.

Western Cape Government encourages people to take up comfortable Q and I:

Earlier today, I held a digicon with Minister of Transport and Public Works, Bonginkosi Madikizela and Minister of Health, Nomafrench Mbombo to provide an update on quarantine and isolation facilities in the province.

The Western Cape Department of Transport and Public Works has brought online 3760 isolation and quarantine facility beds by 24 June. We will soon have 4766 beds available for residents who are not able to isolate or quarantine at their own homes.

Our approach to activating these facilities is as follows:

• All clients with severe symptoms, as well as those at high risk of Covid morbidity and mortality are assessed for the need of hospitalization.
• All those who are symptomatic and not requiring hospitalization are currently offered assisted Quarantine (with or without testing). Once the facility is filled, we then move to activate the next facility.
• The same process is followed for isolation facilities (for those confirmed to have Covid-19).

This ensures that we are not incurring costs for facilities not in use at any point.

Our strategy has been to proactively identify sites across the province, and to prepare them for activation should the need arise. This can be done quickly, as the demand for these facilities emerges.

However, we are experiencing serious challenges in filling these facilities as residents would rather stay in their own homes. There are currently 1006 people in these facilities. While this is an increase from last month, it represents a 21.11% occupancy rate of those beds that have been made available currently.

Some of the questions that are being asked by people who are unwilling to take up the offer to isolate or quarantine in these facilities are:

• Can I bring my own food?
• Who will look after my house?
• Can I leave to visit my family?
• Can I drink alcohol at the facility?

There are also concerns that people will be identified in their communities as having Covid-19 if they make use of these facilities. The fear of discrimination and rejection by communities is therefore an additional concern.

The Western Cape Government is responding to this challenge by mobilizing all sectors and civil society. In line with our existing hotspot strategy, we are adopting context sensitive approaches for each area. This includes:

• Communication strategies
• Engagement with local community leaders
• Public messaging by local personalities, and
• Behaviour change strategies

Community health workers, who are respected in their communities, also pursue engagements with households – especially with vulnerable persons at risk.

We have also re-purposed the Western Cape’s contact centre to make outbound calls to confirmed cases and contacts of these cases to encourage them to take up these facilities.

The centre has already made hundreds of calls and offers the opportunity to make use of these facilities three times, allowing for a more personal explanation of why it is worthwhile to do so.

This evening, I will be joined by Minister Madikizela on Zibonele FM as part of a series of engagements where we will discuss the benefits of making use of Q&I facilities. This is part of our ramped-up communications to help explain the benefits of Q&I.

I am also pleased that Red Dot Lite transport service is operational, safely transporting residents to these facilities.

My message to you today is to please make use of these facilities if you are unable to do so at home. These facilities are comfortable and safe.

It is understandably a difficult thing to do, and I understand leaving home is tough: but if you do so, you can make sure that you don’t spread the virus to anyone else in your home or community.

We need to think of the ones we love right now and make small sacrifices to keep them safe. Let’s do it for our grans, aunties and best friends.

To those residents who don’t require to isolate or quarantine because you do not have Covid-19 or because you are not a close contact of someone who has Covid-19, be a voice of kindness and support. Praise your friends, colleagues, family members and fellow members of the community who take up this offer.

Be compassionate and caring and reject discrimination when you encounter it. Any person can get infected -we all deserve love during this challenging time.

Modelling and provisioning in the Western Cape

The Western Cape has over 1700 patients who have tested positive with Covid-19 in hospitals. This includes both public and private facilities. Of this total, over 300 people are in ICU or high care facilities in these hospitals.

This is the highest number of Covid-19 hospitalisations to date, and we are anticipating and planning for a further increase in demand in our services.

The additional capacity provided for by the Hospital of Hope at the CTICC has already provided significant support, recording 230 admissions by 24 June. 176 people have been discharged from this field hospital to date.

Our health care system planning and provisioning is guided by modelling, which is done in conjunction with the National COVID-19 Epi Model consortium, which is the same model used by the National Government.

As a caring and responsible government, we prepare against a range of possible scenarios as guided by this technical work, including those which anticipate limited mitigation of the epidemic.

We believe it would be irresponsible to plan for an optimistic scenario, and we are then not able to provide services to those who need it.

However, I must stress that modelling is never perfect. It is based on a number of assumptions on how the virus might spread through our communities, and who might get infected. We therefore need to continuously re-assess the model by putting in new data from what is happening “on the ground” in our context.

We currently cannot be certain whether we have started approaching our peak or whether it has been pushed out, and we are therefore undertaking an additional calibration of the model using latest data and trends. We will make this new calibration public as soon as it is completed.

Health System Preparation Update:

Testing and Triage Centres

The Western Cape Government continues to open new testing and triage centres across the province.

We currently have 19 of these facilities operational, including 4 facilities outside of the Metro (Paarl, George, Worcester and Ceres).

An additional 15 facilities will be completed by the first week of July, including:

• Stellenbosch Hospital
• Robertson Hospital
• Gustrouw
• Kleinvlei
• Macassar
• Khayelitsha (Site B)
• Bothasig
• Durbanville
• Reed Street
• Symphony Way
• District Six
• Gugulethu
• Retreat
• Elsie’s River
• Du Noon
• Van Guard CHC

Further to this, some 24 testing and triage facilities will be opened in rural areas of the Western Cape, including:

• Bella Vista
• De Doorns
• Klapmuts
• Op die Berg
• Laingsburg
• Nieuveldpark
• Sandhills
• Asia Park
• Crags
• Ladismith
• Hawston
• Kleinmond
• Railton
• Citrusdal
• Diazaville
• Klawer
• Piketberg
• Riebeek West and Velddrif Clinics
• Beaufort West
• Alan Blyth and Harry Comay Hospitals
• Slangrivier Satellite Clinic
• Hermanus

Field Hospitals:

Our third temporary field hospital at Brackengate is on schedule and is expected to take its first patient on 10 July 2020. The field hospital will have 330 beds and will provide intermediate care.

The Sonstraal Hospital in the Cape Winelands will accommodate approximately 150 beds and will be undertaken in phases. 63 beds will become available in the first week of July.

Fatality Management:

The Western Cape is also making sure it is adequately prepared to manage increased fatalities. A temporary facility for this purpose is being constructed at Tygerberg Hospital and will be completed by first week of July. This is being done in conjunction with the City of Cape Town.

The use of steroids in treatment:

The use of steroids has been approved for use on our clinical platform in line with international recommendations and the MAC recommendations. This will have a positive impact on the clinical outcomes of patients infected with Covid-19. These steroids will be used for ventilated patients and those on high flow nasal oxygen.

The use of oxygen:

Oxygen has shown to have a significantly positive impact on the clinical outcomes of patients, and we are using oxygen in our facilities to manage ill patients.

An oxygen calculator has been developed that facilities can use to access their daily oxygen requirements. We have also adopted a predictive model that shows that our current average consumption is 12 tons a day and at the peak will require approximately 40 tons of oxygen daily. We have engaged with suppliers, and we have been assured of this supply.

Update on Private Sector cooperation:

A Call for Service has been issued to all Licensed Private Hospital Groups to purchase bed capacity in terms of palliative care, general, High Care and ICU. The National Department of Health has negotiated the tariffs and hospital groups have confirmed their commitment, with each nominating their chosen Admin Intermediary. The parties are busy concluding and signing SLAS and addressing operation requirements. The first few patients have been referred and admitted to test the systems.

Our heroes on the frontline:

I want to again thank every single person in our health system working tirelessly on the frontline. You are heroes and we salute you.

Staffing remains a very real challenge in our health response, because all new facilities need people to make them effective. This is happening at a time when more people are filling ill – as we have seen globally.

We have introduced a number of mitigation steps to address this, including the use of volunteers, bursar nurses and the Cuban doctor contingent.

I also very pleased that our department of health has implemented a training course to upskill nurses in intensive care management. These are skills that can be used beyond the crisis and will be of personal benefit to both the nurses and our communities.

I want to again call on all our residents to join me in celebrating our healthcare workers and other frontline staff. This is a very stressful and anxious time for them as they work tirelessly to save lives. Show your appreciation in whatever way you can – and let them know that the Western Cape is behind them.

Stay Safe. Save Lives.

During this difficult time for our province and country, the most important thing we can do is to keep ourselves safe. When we do this, we slow the spread of the virus, and help protect the ones we love.

I again call on all our residents to play their part in saving lives, by:

​-Regularly washing your hands, keeping surfaces clean and coughing or sneezing into a tissue or your arm

-Staying home as much as possible, especially if you fall into one of the risk groups

-Wearing a clean, cloth mask whenever you leave home

-Ensuring that you keep a distance of 1.5 metres between yourself and any other person

-Staying home if you are experiencing symptoms or feel unwell

-Seek medical attention if you are experiencing shortness of breath

MEDIA RELEASE BY DAVID MAYNIER

Date: 24 June 2019

Release: immediately

Supporting the Long Street Kiosks during the Covid-19 crisis

Businesses in the Western Cape have been hard hit during the Covid-19 crisis, and so we are doing everything we can to support them, especially entrepreneurs of small to medium enterprises and those in the informal sector. On Wednesday (24 June 2020), we handed over a number of small assets and marketing collateral, together with our Covid-19 Business Safety Kits, to some of the businesses operating in the Long Street Kiosks to assist them during this difficult time.

Since 2016, the Long Street Kiosks project has offered 10 Small and Micro Enterprises (SMEs) formal trading spaces within the City of Cape Town Central Business District (CBD) so provide them with access to new market opportunities. During Covid-19 these businesses have shown great resilience by diversifying their products to include hand sanitisers and masks or selling their products through e-commerce..

To determine how best we can assist the Long Street Kiosk businesses, the Department of Economic Development and Tourism (DEDAT) assessed these businesses’ current challenges and needs. This assessment identified the type of support or intervention needed for each business which included items such as blenders, coffee grinders, fridges and branded marketing materials.

In some cases, the needs identified resulted in DEDAT connecting the businesses with our partner organisations such as Productivity South Africa to provide production layout and manufacturing advice, the Small Enterprise Development Agency (Seda) to assist with marketing and promotional material and an application to finance equipment, the Cape Peninsula University of Technology to provide a knitting production specialist to support one of the beneficiaries and with Clotex to onboard the business as part of the SMME Booster Fund programme.

Zaida Abrahams from Zee Zees Halal Foods expressed her thanks to DEDAT for the donation of a stove, “Currently I can do 36 pies at a time, but this allows me to do 100 pies at a time. So my time will be managed more effectively. I can take on bigger orders, and push out more meals, so this will really help me going forward. Thank you so much.”

While, Nokuthula “Teddy” Luthuli from Smoothie On The Go, also thanked DEDAT for the donation of an industrial blenders and refrigerator, adding that “these things that we’re getting today will definitely help us a lot going forward.”

Entrepreneurs in the Western Cape have shown great resilience during the Covid-19 crisis, and we remain fully committed to supporting them to open up safely and responsibly during the Covid-19 crisis.

• To view this statement online please visit: https://www.westerncape.gov.za/news/supporting-long-street-kiosks-during-covid-19-crisis
• For broadcasters, please find soundbyte from the owners of Zee Zees Halaal Foods and Smoothie on the Go attached.

Media Queries:

Francine Higham

Spokesperson for the Provincial Minister of Finance and Economic Opportunities

(Responsible for the Provincial Treasury and the Department of Economic Development and Tourism)

Tel: 021 483 4327 / Cell: 071 087 5150 / Email: francine.higham@westerncape.gov.za