The Independent Technical Expert Group at its sixth meeting held this week called for urgent action including extending quarantine curfew till 18 September with strong enforcement and household compliance to save lives from the COVID-19 pandemic

Quoting a Monash University study, the Experts Group said extending lockdowns past 31 days is projected to reduce deaths from COVID-19. “If the lockdowns are extended to 18 September and 2 October, respectively, 7,500 and 10,000 deaths can be prevented, relative to a release of lockdown on 31 August.

It said as of 26 August 2021, the total number of deaths was 7,948, 198 of which was reported in the last 24 hours and increasing faster than projected.

The country on Wednesday reported 4,472 cases with an increase in the severely ill as per clinicians working in hospitals. 

“Close to 90% of the samples sequenced show the Delta variant and has now spread to other provinces other than Western Province – it is highly transmissible with a shorter incubation period,” the Experts Group said.

It said hospitals are at full capacity with an increasing number of health workers getting infected.  Critical supplies are low in stock, including oxygen, and additionally, the virus spreading within homes.

Among urgent responses called for are enforcement of stringent measures with compliance of the public to reinforce accelerated vaccination and a social support system for vulnerable populations.

“Maintaining stringency to reduce transmission, caseload and deaths will enable quicker economic recovery,” it said.

Experts Group also noted the vaccination drive could be completed for effective protection of the population, especially in the context of rapid spread of the Delta variant.

Crucial enabling factors according to the Experts Group are saving lives; key adjustments made to service delivery to care for cases and effective triage system supported by health professionals; optimise the home management protocols and monitoring of hypoxia; accelerate vaccination and target the vulnerable with the most effective vaccines.

To prevent transmission, it has recommended extending strict social measures to reduce transmission; and household and individual compliance have been highlighted as crucial. 

It also wants a reduction in mobility by better targeting the measures that should be tightened using mobility data from Google Maps, mobile phone data, and Facebook data to identify the most important measures.

The need to plan in advance for a systematic re-opening of sectors, regions, and return of employment categories has been stressed as well.

In terms of establishing safety nets, the Experts Group called for strengthening the social support system by engaging with temples and religious groups, NGOs, civil society, etc. (i.e. a national mobilisation effort) to overcome the needs of the lower income groups, led by the Government and supported by development partners as needed.  

Unabating COVID forces Govt. to extend curfew