For Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I’m Sane Dhlamini.

Making headlines: Covid-19 death toll hits 2 529 as cases rise to 144 264, Gauteng could see 'intermittent lockdown' as Covid-19 peak looms and, Human Rights Commission supports reinstatement of school nutrition programme

Covid-19 death toll hits 2 529 as cases rise to 144 264

Health Minister Dr Zweli Mkhize reported on Monday that 73 more people had lost their lives due to the virus, taking the total number of deaths in the country to 2 529.

Mkhize said 43 of the deaths were reported in the Western Cape, 10 in Eastern Cape, six in Gauteng, six in KwaZulu-Natal, five in Limpopo, two in the North West and one death in Mpumalanga.

The mortality rate is 1.8% while the number of recoveries is 70 614.

Gauteng could see 'intermittent lockdown' as Covid-19 peak looms

The Gauteng provincial government says it may possibly look at "intermittent lockdowns" as the province prepares for a peak in coronavirus cases.

Health MEC Dr Bandile Masuku said the intermittent lockdowns will see the province opening up and then closing the economy for a particular period of time.

To alleviate cluster outbreaks and the increasing spread, Masuku said the provincial command council was looking into various options and would continue monitoring the changes in the pandemic throughout the coming weeks.

Human Rights Commission supports reinstatement of school nutrition programme

The South African Human Rights Commission has said that the decision not to reinstate fully the national school nutrition programme, which has been suspended since the hard lockdown began in March, is catastrophic for learners from poor backgrounds. 

The commission said it "notes with concern that the NSNP was suspended at the start of lockdown, and has yet to be comprehensively reinstated". 

It said the programme is crucial as it seeks to mitigate the effects of poverty while contributing to the constitutional rights to sufficient food and a basic education of learners in need.

That’s a roundup of news making headlines today

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