In episode 26 of Inside Covid-19, how to address the public transport dilemma with Friday's lockdown easing; an economist explains how Covid-19 will effectively mean the SA business activity stands still for three years; an update on vaccines and a warning from Prof Alan Whiteside; an update, too, on widely touted anti Covid-19 drugs whose trials have failed; and a Government press conference detailing help for tourism companies, small businesses and spaza shops.

In today's news headlines: * The Unemployment Insurance Fund has paid out just over R3.3bn ($177.3m) to people whose work and income have been affected by the coronavirus pandemic; * Net1, listed on the Johannesburg and Nasdaq markets, is seeking bankruptcy protection in court for its subsidiary Cash Paymaster Services, a company that for about five years distributed R150bn in welfare payments annually on behalf of the South African government; * Pepkor, one of South Africa’s largest retail groups, is at the centre of a scandal in which one of its units, JDG Trading, is accused of fleecing poor, illiterate people; and * Problems at the Land Bank have hammered London listed Standard Chartered bank. The Plc is owed not far off $250m.

The deadly threat of Covid-19 multiples when one's immune system is compromised, such as the three million HIV infected individuals not on ARV’s. But a double whammy is in store for those cancer patients who are undergoing chemo-therapy. Not only does chemo kill the white blood cells, whose job it is to keep our immune system working but in addition to this threat lies in the increased potential of contracting the virus. Cancer patients on chemo have no option but to make weekly trips to the hospital, a place where the severely infected need to be. How does someone on chemo right now keep themselves safe? Chris Bateman, a well-known journalist and contributor to Biznews has first hand knowledge on this. Himself a cancer victim currently undergoing chemotherapy Chris tells us how he anticipates a 12-month lockdown, and the extra measures he is taking to keep Covid-19 away from his door. - Vanessa Marks

In this week's episode of the Rational Radio show David Shapiro takes a look at Sasol in the wake of the move to ESG and the low oil price; GG Alcock explains why the easing of lockdown in townships came not a minute too soon; From the UK, Prof Alan Whiteside updates us on the latest Covid-19 news including SA's coming wave of infections and the search for a vaccine; and Chris Yelland exposes Eskom's potential VW moment as the troubled SOE apparently lied to about the carbon emissions at its Kendal power plant. - Alec Hogg

Episode 25 of Inside Covid-19 is dominated by the easing of lockdown restrictions dominates; we have a moving discussion from Biznews colleague Chris Bateman who explains why being infected with Covid-19 is a likely death sentence for himself and other immune suppressed people; also the HSRC report on what the lockdown has done to SA; UK prime minister Boris Johnson and his nation’s fight against the invisible mugger; and why it takes so long to recover after being forced onto a ventilator.

While many of the large economies are tentatively starting to phase out their lockdowns, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who is back in office after he recovered from Covid-19 says he does not want to throw away the sacrifices Brits made to fight this 'invincible mugger' and won't open up the economy too soon. Official hospital deaths in the UK now stand at more than 152,000 cases with 20,000 deaths, with many who died in the community not included. Compare that to the 87 deaths and 4,546 cases in South Africa where the first phase of opening up will start next week. The Government has indicated that it will consult industries this week on its plans. - Linda van Tilburg

Stellenbosch University Professor Andreas Diacon is launching a 500-person clinical trial aimed to determine whether the BCG vaccines are indeed a shield against Covid-19. The trial involves revaccination of BCG that's been universally applied in South Africa since 1973. Numerous reports have pointed out a correlation between infection rates for countries where BCG is universally administered as being far lower than in those countries like the USA, Italy and Belgium where it was never used. There must be some degree of evidence that it might actually work to warrant the experiments. Hope springs! - Editor

The Land Bank, a South African state entity, is in trouble, warning in late April that it might default on payment. Not as well known as the big listed retail and commercial banks, the Land Bank is a vitally important national institution as it props up the commercial agriculture sector. If it disappears, food inflation could soar. That's the message from one of South Africa's top developmental and fixed interest investment experts, Ms Tarryn Sankar of Futuregrowth, which has funds that hold Land Bank debt. In this podcast, the head of listed credit speaks to Jackie Cameron about what has been happening behind the scenes of this bank crisis.

In today's news headlines: * With less than 90 deaths from the deadly Covid-19 virus as of the weekend, South Africa will start to lift the lockdown at the end of this week - and shifts to curfews; * The government will allow sales of winter clothing, bedding and heating as the nation enters winter. Mines are resuming operations, and automotive manufacturing can ramp up to half their full capacity, Trade and Industry Minister Ebrahim Patel said; * In the loosened lockdown starting May 1, sales of tobacco products will be allowed, and exercise that isn’t undertaken in groups or in buildings such as gyms will be reintroduced, reports Bloomberg; * Economic workgroup Business for South Africa projects there could be 1m job losses as a result of Covid-19 containment measures; and * The state-owned Industrial Development Corp. of South Africa, which provides funding to agro-processing as well as other manufacturing industries, has said it is willing to work with the Land Bank. Futuregrowth Asset Management, which manages about R194bn, including Land Bank debt, said it is also prepared to aid the cash-strapped lender, says Bloomberg.

China was the first place to roll out a coronavirus lockdown and today, it’s the first place to try and resume normal life. But as lockdowns lift in hard-hit Wuhan and Hubei province, life is anything but normal. In this episode, which features content from the Bloomberg Businessweek podcast, we look at what post-lockdown life in China is like. From constant temperature checks to harsh travel and workplace restrictions, post-lockdown life is much less free and connected than it was. As the South African government slowly lifts its lockdown measures, China offers some insight into what our future may hold.

Details were presented this weekend by the Minister of Trade and Industry, Ebrahim Patel on how the government plans to reopen sectors of the economy with strict safety measures in place on the 1st of May. It includes: - The full opening of agriculture, forestry, fishing, horticulture and the transport of livestock and animal auctions; - A return to 100% capacity at open cast mines; - The partial opening of manufacturing with 20% of workers restarting as a broad baseline. The exceptions are automotive manufacturing including components, production of cement and other construction materials as well as stationery production which can now be scaled up to 50% production; and - Consumers would be allowed to buy food from restaurants for home delivery, and can purchase stationery and educational books, tobacco products as well as personal computers and mobile telephones but alcohol sales are still prohibited. The Minister said the government would be seeking feedback from industries, businesses and trade unions on the measures. At the same briefing, Minister Nskosazana Dlamini-Zuma said if the number of cases of Covid-19 increased rapidly and South Africans did not adhere to the restrictions, the government would not hesitate to slide back to level 5 of the lockdown. - Linda van Tilburg

Finance Minister Tito Mboweni provided more detail today of the R500bn package of economic measures that were announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa which are aimed at addressing challenges that the economy face which has been hit hard by the Covid-19 outbreak and a recent credit rating downgrade by Moody's. In a web media conference, Mboweni said that the combined fiscal and monetary policy interventions amounted to R800bn. A revised public bill will be tabled to deal with the budget re-allocations. He announced that South Africa could access $4.2bn from the International Monetary Fund, $1bn from the Brics Bank and a smaller loan of between $55-$60m from the World Bank. These offers will be followed up on by the Treasury. With regard to the Landbank, Mr Mboweni said the government and Treasury is involved in lengthy discussions to ensure it can continue to function and will do whatever is needed to support the Landbank. He said the increase in social grants was a temporary measure and they will be reduced by October. Mr Mboweni envisaged a new economy after the novel coronavirus outbreak with more youth employment, less reliance on China and said that structural reforms of the economy will continue. Spaza shops will be brought into the formal economy. He also said that he wanted a labour market that favoured South Africans. - Linda van Tilburg

Earlier this week President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that the Unemployment Insurance Fund’s (UIF) special Covid-19 benefit had paid out R1.6 billion by close of business on Tuesday, assisting more than 37 000 companies and 600 000 workers. There’s a different story from employers and unions who say there are logjams in the system. And Labour and Employment Minister Thulas Nxesi reportedly told MPs on Wednesday that the UIF administrators had found instances where employers have attempted to over-claim from its Covid-19 special cover, though concerns that the UIF is vulnerable to fraudsters were quickly quashed. In this podcast BizNews editor-in-chief Alec Hogg interviews Gerhard Papenfus, the Chief Executive of the National Employers' Association of South Africa (NEASA), for the lowdown on how employers are accessing Covid-19 UIF payments. - Jackie Cameron

In episode 24 of Inside Covid-19, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa lays down the post-lockdown rules; a 500 person clinical test on BCG vaccines kicks off next week; 75 000 people contribute R2.6bn into the Solidarity Fund; low but rapidly growing UIF disbursements; and a chilling end to the episode as an ICU doctor shares how she and colleagues are preparing for the possibility that 20% of them will die from the coronavirus when the infection wave hits SA. - Alec Hogg

In today's news headlines: * South Africa has decided to start easing Covid-19 containment restrictions as the number of deaths reaches 75. Lockdowns will ease in a phased manner and will vary between provinces, and a ban on cigarette sales will be lifted; * President Donald Trump has pledged to help South Africa and Africa in its fight to stop the spread of coronavirus. That’s according to President Cyril Ramaphosa, who shared this news in a Tweet; * At least 75,000 generous Saffers have contributed to the Solidarity Fund set up by the government to combat the spread of the coronavirus; * Amid concerns about how South Africa is dealing with the economic fall-out of the Covid-19 pandemic, its bonds have lost 3.6% for dollar investors in April, the worst performance among 32 emerging markets tracked by Bloomberg and bringing losses for the year to 31%; and * Pharmaceutical group Dis-Chem has been referred to the Competition Tribunal after an investigation following complaints from consumers about its pricing of dust and surgical masks.

President Cyril Ramaphosa has announced that the lockdown of the country to contain Covid-19 will be eased in phases. Presently the country is in Phase 5 and in the first step on the 1st of May, Phase 4 will be implemented during which some economic activity will be allowed with extreme precautions. Exercise will be permitted and certain classification of industries will be allowed to resume. Businesses that would be allowed to resume will only be permitted to use a third of their workforce. Ramaphosa said some sectors would however not be allowed to resume production in Level 4. There will also be a phased opening of schools and other educational institutions. International borders will however remain close and international travel or travel between provinces will not be allowed. There would be limited public transport and all passengers would be required to wear faces masks. Mass gatherings, the opening of bars and shebeens, conferences, cinemas and theatres or sporting events and religious gatherings will not be allowed. All South Africans have been asked to wear face masks. Ministers will give more details tomorrow on which sectors of the economy will be opened and after that there will be consultations with the business sector before the 1st of May. - Linda van Tilburg

The transition from classroom education to home schooling can be easy if you have internet access. One of the Biznews contributors Anton Roux related how his daughter’s day has not changed much during the Covid-19 lockdown as she sits down in front of her laptop for lessons until the school day ends. For many other families in the country, it is not that easy as they do not have access to the internet. The charity Project Isizwe is enabling some poorer families to continue education by providing them with modems and data. But as Allan Knott-Graig told Alec Hogg it is a short-term solution during the novel coronavirus outbreak. The cost of data in South Africa is too expensive to provide internet to communities over the longer term. – Linda van Tilburg

Earlier this week, oil prices plunged into negative terrain. This was an unprecedented move with South African asset management experts noting that they had never seen this development in their careers. In a clear sign that global Covid-19 lockdowns have eliminated demand for oil, pollution levels from oil-related emissions have been clearing to reveal Himalayan mountain tops and ocean life in Italian tourism hotspot Venice. But there's more to the oil price plunge than most of the world's passenger vehicles standing idle, with the commodity subject to complex contracts and supply factors, including international wrangling between oil-producers like Saudi Arabia, Russia and the US. In this highly informative podcast, Justus Van der Spuy, a global expert on energy markets, demystifies the oil price collapse. He also discusses, with BizNews editor-in-chief Alec Hogg, why energy and chemicals company Sasol, which has taken a severe battering on the JSE in recent months, was relatively unaffected by the sharpest oil price shock in living memory. - Jackie Cameron

The Solidarity Fund is ramping up its efforts to help with 'a food crisis that is growing across all nine provinces.' The Lead of Human Interventions at the Fund, Nicola Gambolik told a news conference today that they want to ensure that food reaches the right people rapidly. The Fund is also considering a system of food vouchers. - Linda van Tilburg

The Solidarity Fund has spent R1.1bn of the total of R2.6bn it raised on the procurement of Personal Protective Equipment. Jonathan Bloomberg who is the lead for the Fund for Healthcare Interventions told a news conference that that the procurement is a complex process made more difficult by the fall in the value of the rand and the rise in the cost of air freight. - Linda van Tilburg

The Solidarity Fund, that was put in place to help South Africa's fight against the Coronavirus has grown to R2.6bn. The Fund has a new board and the interim CEO Nomkhita Nqweni said that it was independent from government. So far the fund has approved R1.1bn for protection equipment for the health care sector; this includes 200 ventilators. By the end of the week the Fund expects to deliver 250,000 food parcels to poorer households. PwC has been appointed as the external auditor and the health-procurement function is being done through Business for South Africa. The Chair of the Fund, Gloria Serobe said in a media webinar this morning that the fund was a symbol of the enormous resilience of South Africans. - Linda van Tilburg

In episode twenty three of Inside Covid-19 we open a window into what it’s going to be like going into the office post-lockdown; revisit the Oxford University prof who promised a coronavirus vaccine this year – with human trials starting tomorrow; speak to a London oil trader who explains why virus-impacted crude oil traded at minus $40 a barrel; we share a model for how parents can pull together to help internet-deprived school kids keep up; and reasons why the US’s Covid-19 infection plateau may have been reached.

The calls for government to lift the lockdown, even if it is just partial, have been growing louder. Recently, it came from an informal sector expert GG Alcock who told the stories of the street traders who were initially banned from buying from markets and later allowed to sell cold food like vegetables, but were still suffering. And Dr Theuns Eloff who said the lockdown can lead to deaths if GDP plunges; to name but a few. And now medical students from the University of Cape Town have added their voices to calls for the lockdown to be relieved. Speaking for the group to Alec Hogg, Dr Fred Tyler said “even before the pandemic, more people died from poverty than from normal flu.” His fear is not that people will die of the coronavirus but from poverty. President Cyril Ramaphosa has announced an extraordinary budget of R500bn to deal with poverty and hunger during the lockdown and said he will review the restrictions and announce a decision tomorrow. What many people are asking of the President is not to give them food or handouts; they want to be allowed to work so that they can feed their families. – Linda van Tilburg

The search for ventilators that have become such a scarce commodity during the coronavirus pandemic, as they are critically important for patients who land in intensive care units with breathing problems, has been described as ‘a hunt for a dodo’. Anaesthetists in South Africa have recently been informed that their ventilators may be needed when Covid-19 reaches a peak so there is clearly a shortage in South Africa as well. It has prompted a mechatronic company, Clifford Welding who have made ventilators in the past but stopped production because they refused to pay bribes to corrupt officials, to improve their initial design and software, and come up with an updated version of their original product. But despite help from ANC officials and the Industrial Development Corporation; they have run into red tape with delays at Customs at OR Tambo Airport and say there does not seem to be a rush from state departments to order units. The Managing Director of Clifford Welding, Iain Ambler told Alec Hogg they have had interest from overseas, but not much locally. – Linda van Tilburg

In today's news headlines: * About 90 police officers have been arrested for breaching nationwide lockdown regulations. This was revealed on Wednesday by Police Minister Bheki Cele who said that more than 130 civil servants face prosecution in connection with contravening regulations; * Communications and Digital Technologies Minister Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams has paid a R1,000 admission of guilt fine for contravening lockdown regulations; * The South African government is considering bailing out the Land Bank as it moves to inject liquidity into the troubled economy; * German Covid-19 vaccine company leaps in Frankfurt; and * Europeans are warning of a damaging rift because of mounting anger over China’s behaviour during the coronavirus pandemic, which includes claims of price gouging by Chinese suppliers and predatory M&A activity.