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Thandeka Moyo-Ndlovu, Senior Health Reporter
ZIMBABWE’S Covid-19 response is still guided by science and the country is not in a hurry to relax prevention measures like other countries, a senior Government official has said.

The National Covid-19 Coordinator Dr Agnes Mahomva said the wearing of masks is still important in Zimbabwe although neighbouring countries have been scrapping the prevention measure.

On Tuesday Botswana announced that wearing face masks outdoors will no longer be required as the number of reported cases of Covid-19 had decreased in recent months.

Neighbouring South Africa – the hardest hit country in Africa – announced that the mandatory wearing of masks had been lifted on June 22.

Namibia lifted the wearing of masks on March 16 this year.

More than 1,7 million Zimbabweans have been arrested for violating Covid-19 regulations since measures to combat the pandemic were introduced in March 2020.

The cumulative number of arrests since March 30, 2020 stands at 1 724 794 according to the police.

As of Tuesday, Zimbabwe had 256 423 confirmed cases of Covid-19 infections, 250 401 recoveries and 5 579 deaths.

To date, 6 378 062 people have received the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, 4 740 499 the second, while 945 794 people have received the booster shot.

In an interview yesterday, Dr Mahomva said the country was not in a hurry to relax any of the Covid-19 measures just because others are doing so.

“Zimbabwe is guided by science which includes our statistics and we will not make decisions based on what other countries are doing.

The least we can do is take note of how they manage their cases and learn without necessarily copying them because we are still battling with Covid-19,” she said.

“Winter is still not yet over and our statistics show that although cases have declined, we are still recording new cases hence we cannot relax.

As Zimbabwe we all know what happens when we relax and as long as we have these cases, there is a high chance that they may multiply within a few days and leave us with many infections and deaths.

We cannot take that chance.”

She said members of the public must be vigilant in complying with set measures.

“We will only make decisions that make good science sense and at the moment our new cases are still high and we are not even in a hurry to relax any of the measures that have helped contain the deadly disease.

The fact on the ground is we are not yet safe hence I urge members of the public to wear their masks properly, practise hand hygiene and social distancing,” said Dr Mahomva.

The overall number of new Covid-19 cases continued to decrease, with 227 cases having been recorded during the past week compared to 383 recorded the previous week, marking a 41 percent decline.

An average of 32 new cases was recorded per day, compared to 55 new cases the previous week.

This trend of declining cases, Dr Mahomva said, confirms that the pandemic remains under control.

The public is, however, urged to continue adhering to Covid-19 prevention measures, which have largely contributed to the pandemic being under control.

– @thamamoe