Zimbabwe extends COVID-19 lockdown by another 14 days

Zimbabwe extends its COVID-19 lockdown by another 14 days to May 3, President Emmerson Mnangagwa announced Sunday.

The government imposed a 21-day lockdown from March 30 to curb the spread of COVID-19. The lockdown was estimated to end today.

During the lockdown, government has allowed only workers in essential services to continue going to work while observing precautionary and sanitation measures.

The number of COVID-19 cases in Zimbabwe rose to 25 after a case was recorded in Harare on Saturday, including two recoveries and three deaths.

"The country is yet to meet the conditions for lifting the lockdown that were recently announced by the World Health Organization," he said.

He also noted that cases were increasing globally.

"Guided by these realities and to allow ourselves greater leeway to prepare for worse times ahead, the government has decided to extend with immediate effect the national lockdown by a further 14 days," he said.

He said it had been a difficult decision to take, but it was necessary and unavoidable given the circumstances.

Among other measures, the military, police and municipal police were deployed to ensure that people stayed home and avoided unnecessary trips.

Retail shops were allowed to open until 3 p.m. every day, while members of the public could still purchase essential medicines from pharmacies.

Some sectors of the economy, which had initially been classified as non-essential were later allowed to operate, such as beverage manufacturers and the agricultural concerns.

(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)