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Patrick Chitumba,  Midlands Bureau Chief
PEOPLE should adapt their lifestyles to the new normal to curb the spread of Covid-19 for the country to win the war against the pandemic, the Minister of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Monica Mutsvangwa has said.

With no vaccine in sight experts have said people should learn to live safely.

In a media briefing after the ad-hoc Inter Ministerial Taskforce on Covid-19 meeting yesterday, Minister Mutsvangwa said as each day passes people are learning new information about the virus.

“Experts have informed us that those who will win this war are those who adapt to the new normal which entails adopting the protective and preventative measures that curb the spread and transmission of Covid-19. This is a new normal. Let us all accept it and adapt our lifestyles to it,” she said.

Minister Mutsvangwa said Government appreciates how difficult it is for citizens to avoid venturing out due to the demands of different social circumstances, but they must not put their lives at risk.

She said even though the country has been in lockdown for about five months, the worst is not yet over.

“Let us dig in into our legendary resilience and take heart in that what we are being asked to do will save us, our families and communities. Let us not violate the movement restrictions that are in place to protect us and others as well as the wearing of masks in public places,” she said.

Minister Mutsvangwa said the number of local transmission remain worrisome and continue to rise.

She said Government continues to work to prevent the spread of the virus.

“Additionally, community awareness programmes are gathering momentum. The training of trainers is underway in all eight rural and two metropolitan provinces. Training of village and community health workers is also underway in all districts. Village Health Workers are vital to the country’s health delivery system as they interface with communities on a day to day basis,” said the minister.

She said in the current Covid-19 context, the role of Village Health Workers has expanded beyond engaging communities in prevention and protective measures, to include detection and responses in containing the pandemic.

“There are presently 1 293 persons in quarantine facilities, which marks a significant reduction from the figures reported in previous weeks. This again follows the WHO recommendation that the quarantine period be reduced from 21 to 14 days,” said the minister.

She said the National Taskforce has noted with concern that despite Government’s effort to capacitate Zupco to provide services to commuters in urban areas, there is a lot of unnecessary travelling which increases risk in urban areas.

Minister Mutsvangwa said citizens are therefore encouraged to only travel when absolutely necessary and those who do not have to travel during peak hours are also encouraged to avoid travelling during the high congestion times.

She said the National Taskforce is now being chaired by the Minister of Defence and War Veterans Affairs, Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri, who is deputised by the Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, Innovation, Science and Technology Development, Prof Amon Murwira.