Live stream: Ramaphosa addresses the nation, Sunday 28 February

President Cyril Ramaphosa will once again gather the South African public around their television screens on Sunday evening to deliver news that will inform what restrictions and regulations are altered in line with the outcomes of National Coronavirus Command Council (NCCC) meetings held earlier in the week.

Ramaphosa’s latest ‘family meeting’ kicks off at 20:00 sharp on Sunday evening, and there is mounting belief that he’s set to deliver some welcome news that government has now seen fit to further reopen South Africa’s ailing economy and relax restrictions relating to the curfew and travel. All will be revealed in only a few hour’s time.

The Presidency announced that the upcoming address earlier on Sunday afternoon, and you can watch it live by playing the stream provided below.

Watch: President Cyril Ramaphosa addresses the nation LIVE

Lockdown Level shift anticipated

Ramaphosa is expected to make amendments to the current curfew that has been adjusted several times since South Africa was once again thrust into Level 3 lockdown, and many have predicted that a shift to a lower lockdown level is imminent given the steady decline in COVID-19 cases being reported by the Department of Health.

Many are hopeful that restrictions on international travel will be relaxed, and that there will be changes to the permissible number of people allowed to gather in both indoor and outdoor spaces. These changes would greatly improve the opportunities for businesses to begin their recovery in earnest, given the limited freedom they have been afforded in recent months.

The President said on Friday that there is every likelihood that regulations could be relaxed at this stage, but warned that government must remain cautious of opening up the country too rapidly, for fear that this will only undo the efforts that were made over the past three months.