Covid-19 Updates:Zimbabwe extends lockdown...

As infection rate spikes.

20 April 2020

By Hosia Mviringi

Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa this afternoon announced an extension of the the initial 21 day national lockdown by a further 14 days.

Zimbabweans up to this afternoon were a mixed bag of emotions with some anxious to resume normal life while some were extremely cautious as they awaited the Presidential announcement.

The government decision was highly expected in spite of a restless citizenry who are precariously etched on the fence with only two difficult choices to make.

Either the nation could choose to pretend that all is well, lift Lockdown and expose its citizens to widespread and runaway infections, or face the hard reality of a pandemic which is far from reaching its peak.

Zimbabwe obviously has chosen the hard a tedious route to self preservation by choosing caution over adventurism.

With only five of the ten Provinces having recorded positive cases of the novel coronavirus disease the government contends that the disease could be still very far from reaching its peak and thus too early to judge success or failure of the country's interventions.

In his address President Mnangagwa implored the people of Zimbabwe to make the right choices, maintain discipline up th the end of the 14 day period, after which another scientific assessment will be done.

In coming up with the decision he said that the Cabinet agreed that any losses that the economy will incur can never be compared to a potential devastating loss of life, in the same vein any resultant mass infections will put unbearable pressure on the Country's health delivery system.

Hereunder we publish a transcript of President Mnangagwa's speech in full..

"21 days ago, as your President I announced the 21 day lockdown due to the outbr1ak of the novel Covid 19 pandemic.

Today as I address you the Virus has infected more than 2million people globally and the numbers keep rising. The continent of Africa risks Losing to the 0andemic if a casual approach to the pandemic is employed.

Of late we have witnessed a spike in the number of positive cases in Zimbabwe. Thus as a nation we should do our best to avoid any further spread of the pandemic in our country.

Our government continues to do it's best in curbing the pandemic in spite of any challenges that we are encountering at the moment.

The Lockdown clearly bears negative impact to our entire society but nothing can be more important than life itself. Lockdown is never a panacea on it's own but it's a measure put in place to avoid the spread of of the disease while we map way forward.

The national lockdown can not last forever as we should have a national road map that places us ahead of infections while we prepare for vaccines. Government has now embarked on a countrywide mass testing program to have a broader appreciation of the impact of the virus. We have deployed more test kits countrywide.

We have introduced specialized training and retraining programs for our frontline personnel and more human resources are being mobilized. In the past weeks I have held several meetings with various stakeholders to prepare the nation with regards the new dimension in fighting the virus. We have to improve our case tracking system so as to be ahead of the pandemic.

In anticipation of the increased infections, we should be prepared to handle the situation across all facets of life. The government will stop at nothing to ensure that our medical frontline machinery is well oiled and staff highly motivated.

The three week initial Lockdown period ordinarily expires today at midnight and as a result government has reviewed the situation.

We are faced with a situation where we still have our citizens who were trapped abroad by this pandemic are keep trooping into the country, some from the wor.d hot spots of the virus. This continuously puts our country at risk of further infestations and thus our medical institutions continue to test, isolate,treat and monitor every contact.

Thus Cabinet has unanimously agreed to extend the Lockdown by a further 14 days. This has been a very hard but very necessary and unavoidable decision. I therefore urge us all to continue with the same attitude and discipline for the good health of our nation.

The mining sector is to resume and scale up production in accordance with agreed parameters. The mining and health sectors are to work closely to avoid any complications in this regard. In respect of the manufacturing sector, work to resume under strict conditions to avoid any risks. All responsible line Ministries are to work closely with the health Ministry.

Our government continues to work on measures to ensure that our economy does not crumble due to the prevailing measures. The Social Welfare to continue working towards assisting the needy and the vulnerable during this difficult period.

I will continue to visit all areas to personally assess and have an appreciation of the situation on the ground. All essential service will continue on line with set parameters and standards.

Tobacco floors to be decentralized to promote social distancing as prescribed under the Lockdown regulations.

Together we will win against this pandemic.

President Mnangagwa ended his address by wishing the nation safety and good health.