Ramaphosa declares coronavirus a national disaster
President Cyril Ramaphosa has declared the coronavirus outbreak in South Africa a national disaster.
Ramaphosa addressed the nation from the Union Buildings in Pretoria on Sunday on a raft of measures approved by cabinet to slow the spread of the virus.
A total of 61 South Africans have tested positive for Covid-19.
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Travel bans have also been implement on travellers from high-risk countries.
“We are imposing a travel ban from travellers coming in from high-risk countries such as Italy, Germany, Iran, South Korea, Spain, Germany, the United States, the United Kingdom and China as of 18 March 2020,” said Ramaphosa.
“We have cancelled visas to visitors from those counties from today, and previously granted visas are hereby revoked.
“Initially it was people who had traveled from outside the country, it is concerning that we are now dealing with the internal transmission of the virus,” Ramaphosa added.
It is unclear how long the stringent measures will be in place.