South Africa's economy faces uncertain future

    By CHEN YINGQUN | China Daily | Updated: 2020-08-18 08:27
    Share
    Share - WeChat

    Editor's Note:The world faces huge challenges during the global spread of COVID-19, and maybe even greater ones when it is over. Here, in the 18th part of a series titled "One World, One Fight", we look at how countries can work together to fight the virus and meet the challenges when the pandemic ends.

    Doctors inspect a quarantine center in Johannesburg, South Africa, last month. YESHIEL/XINHUA

    Unemployment rises, GDP falls during pandemic

    For Dellon Francis, the measures taken to contain the COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa-the country worst-hit by the virus on the continent-have been particularly "disturbing and challenging".

    Governments worldwide have enforced lockdowns and social distancing regulations, but Francis, founder and operations director of the investment company Capvest Associates, said: "From a cultural perspective, South Africa is a restless nation. We like to be outdoors and don't like to be constrained.

    "The situation is also very challenging for companies in South Africa, as many of them don't have systems in place to support working remotely." He added that cases of domestic violence have risen as a result of employees operating from home.

    Containment measures have meant that people have been unable to travel, work from offices or socialize for months. Francis said the restrictions have triggered numerous underlying psychological issues that have affected many people.

    As of Sunday, there were 583,653 cases of COVID-19 in South Africa, with 11,677 deaths, according to a number of sources. The country has a population of about 58 million.

    The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said there were 1,108,837 confirmed cases on the continent as of Sunday and the death toll was 25,337.

    On March 5, South Africa reported its first COVID-19 case, and enforced a national lockdown later that month to curb the spread of the virus. Borders were closed and most people ordered to stay home, apart from those making essential trips.

    While there has been a gradual relaxation of the restrictions since May 1, the lockdown measures are reviewed from time to time.

    Francis said he has seen many restaurants, shops and real estate agencies close permanently in recent months.

    There is still a huge wealth gap in the country, with many people living on less than the equivalent of $15 a week, he said, adding that the amount of poverty in the country, coupled with unrest, is making the battle against the virus more difficult.

    "As the outbreak has resulted in lost jobs and many people currently being unable to earn an income, there has also been a lot of unrest and sporadic protests. That's a really important issue for the government to start tackling," he said.

    "Many areas of the country don't have basic services such as clean water, electricity and face masks, or sufficient space to maintain social distancing," Francis said. "Unless the government tackles these grassroots problems, there's no way that it can effectively contain the virus."

    1 2 3 4 5 6 Next   >>|

    Related Stories

    Top
    BACK TO THE TOP
    English
    Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site.
    License for publishing multimedia online 0108263

    Registration Number: 130349
    FOLLOW US
    中文字幕日韩精品在线| 国产精品99精品无码视亚 | 在线天堂中文新版www| 人妻丰满AV无码久久不卡| 亚洲欧美中文日韩V在线观看| 超清无码一区二区三区| 亚洲日韩欧洲无码av夜夜摸| 成人精品一区二区三区中文字幕| 国产精品无码永久免费888| 亚洲AV综合色区无码一区爱AV| 久久亚洲2019中文字幕| 最近中文字幕在线中文视频| 国产99久久九九精品无码| 无码永久免费AV网站| 精品亚洲AV无码一区二区三区| 中文字幕欧美在线| 亚洲乱码中文字幕久久孕妇黑人| 国产日韩AV免费无码一区二区三区| 无码精品国产VA在线观看DVD | 国产成人无码一区二区三区在线| 人妻丝袜中文无码av影音先锋专区| 无码国内精品久久人妻麻豆按摩| 精品一区二区三区无码免费视频| 亚洲AV无码AV男人的天堂| 中文字幕无码第1页| 最新无码A∨在线观看| 国产成人无码精品久久久性色| 最近更新免费中文字幕大全| 久久无码AV中文出轨人妻| 中文成人无码精品久久久不卡 | 色综合久久中文色婷婷| 中文字幕丰满伦子无码| 色婷婷综合久久久久中文| 中文字幕一区一区三区| 中文字幕亚洲综合精品一区| 在线播放中文字幕| 中文字幕日韩欧美一区二区| 无码福利写真片视频在线播放| 精品亚洲AV无码一区二区三区 | 无码人妻丰满熟妇区五十路百度| 亚洲国产精品无码成人片久久|