South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa has tested positive for Covid-19 and is being treated for mild symptoms.
Mr Ramaphosa started feeling unwell on Sunday after leaving the state memorial service of South Africa’s last apartheid president, FW de Klerk, in Cape Town, according to a statement from the presidency
People who had contact with the president on the day have been advised to watch for symptoms or to get tested.
The president is fully vaccinated and has delegated all his responsibilities to Deputy President David Mabuza.
President Ramaphosa returned last Wednesday from a trip to Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Ghana and Senegal.
The presidency said he and his delegation were tested for Covid in all the countries they visited. It added that the president had tested negative on his return.
The highly contagious Omicron variant, which has prompted global concern, was first identified in South Africa last month.
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Mali to face more sanctions over elections delay
The West African regional bloc, Ecowas, has expressed ‘’strong concerns’’ over delays in Mali’s transition to civilian rule.
It warned of additional economic sanctions if “no concrete progress” was made to hold fresh elections scheduled for late February.
Mali witnessed military coups in August 2020 and May 2021, with the most recent leading to the overthrow of President Bah Ndaw and Prime Minister Moctar Ouane.
Ecowas also warned that there were no clear indications of a return to constitutional order in neighbouring Guinea – three months after the military toppled President Alpha Condé.
Guinea’s military junta had pledged to hold elections within six months of taking over power.
But the bloc said Guinea’s leaders have assured them that a National Transition Council will be in place by the end of December and that council will propose a timetable.
The regional leaders, who met in Nigeria’s capital, Abuja, also discussed the deteriorating security situation in the region where armed groups have stepped up violence in several countries including Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso and Nigeria.
Source: BBC
