Be Smart About South Africa

SA Reports 2 967 New COVID-19 Cases

Deputy Minister Thembi Siweya visits Transnet School of Rail Esselen Park, Quarantine site for Covid 19. Photo GCIS

The NICD reports 2,967 new COVID-19 cases that have been identified in South Africa, which brings the total number of laboratory-confirmed cases to 2,889,298. This increase represents a 7.0% positivity rate.

“Gauteng, Limpopo and North West Provinces have exited the third wave according to the current wave definitions. There are also sustained decreases in COVID-19 hospitalisations and deaths in all provinces. These trends are encouraging but we should not let our guard down yet,” says Dr Michelle Groome, Head of the Division of Public Health, Surveillance and Response at the NICD.

As per the National Department of Health, a further 124 COVID-19 related deaths have been reported, bringing total fatalities to 86,500 to date. 17,452,783 tests have been conducted in both public and private sectors as per the table below.

Sector	Total tested	New tested
PRIVATE	9 425 440	54%	20,299	48%
PUBLIC	8,027,343	46%	22,280	52%
Total	17,452,783		42,579

PROVINCIAL BREAKDOWN

The majority of new cases today are from KwaZulu-Natal (23%), followed by Western Cape (20%). Eastern Cape accounted for 12%; Free State & Gauteng Province each accounted for 11% respectively; Northern Cape accounted for 8%; North West accounted for 7%; Mpumalanga accounted for 6%; and Limpopo accounted for 2% of today’s new cases. The cumulative number of cases by province is shown in the table below:

Province	Total cases for 21 September 2021	Adjusted numbers after harmonisation	Updated total cases on 21 September 2021	New cases on 22 September 2021	Total cases for 22 September 2021	Percentage total
Eastern Cape	288,331	0	288,331	345	288,676	10,0
Free State	159,531	0	159,531	321	159,852	5,5
Gauteng	914,455	5	914,460	326	914,786	31,7
KwaZulu-Natal	507,916	1	507,917	696	508,613	17,6
Limpopo	121,609	0	121,609	48	121,657	4,2
Mpumalanga	150,075	0	150,075	179	150,254	5,2
North West	148,597	-5	148,592	213	148,805	5,2
Northern Cape	89,083	-6	890,77	250	89,327	3,1
Western Cape	506,734	5	506,739	589	507,328	17,6
Unknown	0	0	0	0	0	0,0
Total	2,886,331	0	2,886,331	2,967	2,889,298	100,0

THE 7-DAY MOVING AVERAGE NUMBER OF NEW CASES BY PROVINCE
The total number of cases today (n= 3 961) is lower than yesterday (n= 5 309) and lower than the average number of new cases per day over the 7 preceding days (n= 5 465). The 7-day moving average daily number of cases has decreased.

For more detailed information, visit the GIS Dashboard.

HOSPITAL ADMISSIONS
There has been an increase of 142 hospital admissions in the past 24 hours. The following table is a summary of reported COVID-19 admissions by sector.

Sector	Facilities Reporting	Admissions to Date	Died to Date	Currently Admitted
Private	255	197,841	36,356	3,879
Public	409	228,577	55,632	3,965
TOTAL	664	426,418	91,988	7,844

VACCINE UPDATE
Groome says that while vaccination coverage is increasing amid stable vaccine supply, we have not yet vaccinated the majority of the adult population. “Some 30% of the adult population have received at least one vaccine dose and in the coming months we need to prioritise the vaccine rollout, especially to those at risk for severe COVID-19 disease and those with underlying comorbidities. Mask wearing, social distancing and hand hygiene remain the main preventative strategies until our vaccine coverage rates increase,” she stresses.

For updates on the national vaccine programme, click here. Thank you for your interest and remember that adhering to preventative measures limits your risk of contracting and spreading COVID-19. For more information on COVID-19, click here.