Covid-19 pandemic is worsening hunger in Brazil
Less than four years after the government instituted a ceiling on public spending, almost 60% of the country’s population is facing food insecurity amid rising job losses.
COVID-19
For the latest Covid-19 statistics, please visit the Covid-19 Corona Virus South African Resource Portal.
Cartoon | Grave mistakes
In this week’s cartoon, the spread of misinformation about Covid-19 vaccines and the resulting hesitation to get vaccinated paint a grim picture for South Africa.
Funeral costs add pain to grief of Covid-19 deaths
Global demand for timber and a huge increase in deaths means the soaring cost of a decent burial is beyond the reach of many impoverished South Africans.
Photo Essay | Rural residents get Covid jab
Non-profit organisation Right to Care has been taking vaccines to underserved areas of the Eastern Cape, giving protection to more than 4 000 people in a month.
Rural residents’ Covid-19 vaccination struggles
Elderly residents in particular face a number of hurdles, from struggling with technology and internet access to the cost of travelling to a vaccination centre.
The sound of silence that’s been the 2020 Olympics
The Tokyo Games have been marked by strict and demanding Covid-19 protocols. But for most athletes, the lack of noisy, enthusiastic supporters cheering them on has been its signature feature.
Most pregnant women still waiting for Covid-19 jabs
South Africa does not consider pregnant women a special priority group. As such, and because most fall into the age 18 to 34 category, they’ll only be eligible for vaccination in September.
‘Are we meant to struggle until we die?’
Without the caregiver top-up and the social relief of distress grants to soften Covid-19’s economic blow, impoverished households, especially those headed by women, are floundering.
Gauteng Covid-19 tsunami a warning for SA
The third wave has pummelled the country’s economic hub. It is likely a foretaste of what the Delta variant will do to a largely unvaccinated population.
India’s health workers are underpaid and overworked
The women who liaise between village residents and the public health system are on the brink of collapse, working long hours for little pay to manage Covid-19 on top of their regular duties.
Preschool teachers decry not getting Covid-19 jabs
While those who fall under the basic education department get priority vaccinations, early childhood development practitioners are treated as if they – and their young charges – do not matter.
Photo Essay | Dal Lake’s first water ambulance
Tariq Ahmad Patloo’s neighbours were too fearful to help him to the banks when he fell ill and needed a Covid-19 test. He didn’t want anyone else to suffer the same way.
How risky is public transport for infectious disease? We tested it
Journalists tested how much of one another’s air we’re likely breathing on public transport. The results will have you shouting, ‘Open the windows!’ next time you go anywhere.
The government must help caregiving women
Carers – who are mostly Black women – are disproportionately affected by the devastation of the Covid-19 pandemic and should be supported, not penalised, by the state.
Covid-19 claims sprinting legend Milkha Singh
Having lived through the trauma of violence during India’s partition, the revered athlete came to symbolise what it means to run for one’s survival and to win against all odds.
Cartoon | Disaster chef
In this week’s cartoon, President Cyril Ramaphosa locks down South Africa’s restaurants and hospitality sector, but he forgets to pay the workers’ bill.
Remembering Wara Fana, who spoke truth to power
Paying tribute to the activist and journalist who died of Covid-19 on 11 June, Louise Vale celebrates his commitment to community news, African languages and media transformation.
Why Covid-19 vaccines should be compulsory
South Africa’s Constitution guarantees everyone an unqualified right to life and the state has a duty to respect, protect, promote and advance that right.
Organise or die
The Covid-19 pandemic hasn’t brought South Africa’s health system to its knees. Instead, it has simply exposed on a wider scale the systematic failures that were already there.
A dean’s tale: The poems of Michael Weeder
The dean of St George’s Cathedral in Cape Town recently published two poetry collections that reflect on the Covid-19 lockdown, the personal, public and political, and identity and home.
Gauteng health system is heading for catastrophe
While officials remain entangled in bureaucratic knots, clinicians warn that the continued closure of the Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital risks a ‘humanitarian disaster’.