Former minister of health and social services Bernard Haufiku has encouraged Namibians to continue wearing masks, particularly in public places.
Haufiku, who runs a medical facility in Windhoek, said this in a statement after he admitted an 18-month-old toddler last week.
“Sars-CoV 2 is still with us. We must, therefore, be still alert at all times. Stay away from crowds, if you can. Do not shy away from wearing a face mask in crowded places,” he said.
He also encourages the unvaccinated to consider vaccination.
“The vaccine does not prevent infection but lessens the severity of Covid-19 disease. It prevents hospitalisations and death due to Covid 19,” he said.
Haufiku’s warning comes as Lüderitz prepares to host the annual crayfish festival.
The Lüderitz State Hospital has reportedly recorded six Covid-19 positive cases this week, of which four are healthcare workers.
Lüderitz mayor Benjamin McKay said the town is readying to deal with any possible cases, and the festival will go ahead as planned.
“We are aware of the cases and the hospital is busy preparing to ensure that it has the capacity in place to deal with the increase in infections. I would, however, caution everyone coming to the festival to adhere to the set protocols,” he said.
According to the latest Covid-19 report issued by the Ministry of Health and Social Services, 14 cases were recorded last week from 332 tests.
Health minister Kalumbi Shangula last week said the ministry has been recording between one and three cases a day.
Nine cases are still active, with 16 recoveries during the period under review.
No deaths were recorded.
The Khomas region recorded 10 cases, the Erongo region two cases and the Kunene region with one case.
No new cases have been reported among health workers in these regions.
No reinfections were recorded.
The report also indicated that there is a low uptake of vaccines, with only 118 people taking the first dose of vaccine, 27 the second dose, while 84 had had boosters.
Covid-19 vaccinations were launched on 18 March 2021 and over 980 317 doses have been administered since them. Of these, 586 820 were first doses, 292 349 were second doses and 109 886 were booster doses.
The ministry continues to advise contacts and suspected cases to self quarantine.
Testing laboratories have also been increased to 23.
The report further highlighted that testing for Covid-19 is increasing and the majority of positive cases are of people in the age brackets of 20 to 49.
Meanwhile, the Bank of Namibia has announced an extension of economic recovery measures put in place to provide relief to households and businesses from the negative impacts of Covid-19 and related restrictions.
These measures will now be in effect until 2024.
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