South Africa Government Taking Facemask Wearing Serious

By  //  November 23, 2021

Ever since the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, the use of medical face masks has become necessary especially in public spaces. This is done in a bid to curb the virus from spreading and prevent reinfection.

Although vaccines have been developed and made available to the populace, several countries still enforce the use of face masks in public spaces as a means of keeping the infection in check.

In South Africa for example, the current lockdown rules have made not wearing a face mask in a public space a criminal offense. The regulation described a face mask as “a cloth mask or handmade item that covers the nose and mouth, or another appropriate item to cover the nose and mouth”.

The lockdown regulations also stated that anyone found guilty of not complying with a verbal instruction by a law enforcement officer to wear a face mask will be convicted and liable to a fine or imprisonment of up to six months. However, children under the age of six were exempted from this regulation.

When the law was implemented, thousands of South Africans who did not comply were arrested and formally charged to court. With this, the arrested individuals had a criminal record added to their profile. Additionally, the South African government ensured that those who do not use a face mask do not have access to public spaces, buildings used by the public for exchanging goods and services, as well as public transport. These regulations made the residents of South Africa adhere to the use of medical face masks in curbing the virus from spreading.

It is important to note that not all “face masks” are capable of preventing the virus from spreading. The market has witnessed the influx of several types of face masks being paraded as a protective measure against the menace. However, the single-use 3-ply disposable civilian masks have been recommended for daily use, while the KN95 and N95 reusable respirator masks are recommended for medical staff and patients.

The most common type which is the single-use 3-ply disposable civilian mask is made from an inner and outer layer produced from spun-bond polypropylene while the center filter is made from premium melt-blown polypropylene. When these face masks are used appropriately, the risk of contracting the virus becomes minimal as they have a high particle filtration level of up to 95% for both viruses and bacteria.

Face masks have become quite popular on the streets of South Africa and you can purchase one from every nook and cranny of the country. The increased demand for the product has made its price drop significantly so everyone can afford them.

There are several manufacturers offering face masks at prices ranging between R99 to R200 per pack depending on the quality and number of products in each pack. Several manufacturers have online stores where their products can be purchased directly. These face masks can also be gotten from pharmaceutical stores around the country.

There are many South African companies that offer the best grade of medical face masks whether it’s the single-use 3-ply disposable civilian masks, KN95 and N95 reusable respirator masks, and other forms of personal protective equipment needed to keep the virus in check.

Sweetoil.co.za is one of these companies that produce high-quality face masks for everyone at phenomenal costs. Their face masks are made from skin-friendly, breathable, and soft material and the noseband is quite adaptable for comfort. The 3-ply disposable face masks cost about R200 for a box of 50 pieces while the KN95 also cost about R200 for a box of 25 pieces.

However, since there are many companies out there that produce masks, picking the best may be difficult as not all the companies are reliable but by reading reviews or getting recommendations from your friends, you reduce the risk of buying from an unreliable company.

Although there are companies who pay for positive reviews, to ensure you are working with a reliable company, ensure you check out a company with as many positive reviews as possible as there is only so much positive reviews a company can pay for. And from the reviews, you can easily detect fake reviews if you look carefully enough while reading through the reviews.