STATEMENT
The National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD), a division of the National Health Laboratory Service, continues the monitoring and surveillance of COVID-19 in order to inform the public health response.
Today the institute reports 7 983 new COVID-19 cases that have been identified in South Africa, which brings the total number of laboratory-confirmed cases to 2 613 569. This increase represents a 21.1% positivity rate. As per the National Department of Health, a further 299 COVID-19 related deaths have been reported, bringing total fatalities to 77 440 to date.
15 633 622 tests have been conducted in both public and private sectors as per the table below.
| Sector | Total tested | New tested | ||
| Private | 8 631 262 | 55% | 13 991 | 37% |
| Public | 7 002 360 | 45% | 23 900 | 63% |
| Total | 15 633 622 | 37 891 | ||
PROVINCIAL BREAKDOWN
The majority of new cases today are from Western Cape (27%), followed by KwaZulu-Natal (24%). Eastern Cape accounted for 18%; Gauteng and Northern Cape accounted for 9% each; Mpumalanga accounted for 7%; Free State accounted for 6%; North West accounted for 3%; and Limpopo accounted for 1% of today’s new cases.
The cumulative number of cases by province is shown in the table below:
| Province | Total cases for 15 August 2021 | Adjusted numbers after harmonisation | Updated total cases on 15 August 2021 | New cases on 16 August 2021 | Total cases for 16 August 2021 | Percentage total |
| Eastern Cape | 242 970 | 2 | 242 972 | 1 438 | 244410 | 9,4 |
| Free State | 136 958 | 1 | 136 959 | 472 | 137431 | 5,3 |
| Gauteng | 889 102 | -19 | 889 083 | 694 | 889777 | 34,0 |
| KwaZulu-Natal | 430 789 | 6 | 430 795 | 1 949 | 432744 | 16,6 |
| Limpopo | 116 441 | 1 | 116 442 | 78 | 116520 | 4,5 |
| Mpumalanga | 135 515 | 2 | 135 517 | 520 | 136037 | 5,2 |
| North West | 136 289 | 1 | 136 290 | 241 | 136531 | 5,2 |
| Northern Cape | 72 908 | -10 | 72 898 | 472 | 73370 | 2,8 |
| Western Cape | 444 614 | 16 | 444 630 | 2 119 | 446749 | 17,1 |
| Total | 2 605 586 | 0 | 2 605 586 | 7983 | 2613569 | 100 |
THE 7-DAY MOVING AVERAGE NUMBER OF NEW CASES BY PROVINCE
The total number of cases today (n= 7 983) is lower than yesterday (n= 10 139) and lower than the average number of new cases per day over the 7 preceding days (n=10 490).
The 7-day moving average daily number of cases has increased.
For more detailed information, visit the GIS Dashboard.
HOSPITAL ADMISSIONS
There has been an increase of 331 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 | 257 | 184 312 | 33 388 | 6 826 |
| Public | 411 | 203 535 | 49 456 | 7 214 |
| TOTAL | 668 | 387 847 | 82 844 | 14 040 |
VACCINE UPDATE
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.
Kind regards,
Sinenhlanhla Jimoh, Senior Communications Manager
National Institute for Communicable Diseases
