Johannesburg - President Cyril Ramaphosa has announced that sit-in restaurants, accredited hotels, cinemas, theatres, casinos, personal care services and non-contact sports including cricket, golf and tennis, are to be reopened.
The return of hotels will not include AirBnB services, he said.
This will allow more than 500 000 people to return to work after more than three months since they were barred from operating in March.
Ramaphosa said a date of when these businesses were to return had yet to be decided, but would soon be communicated.
He also said personal care services - such as hair salons and beauty bars - would be among those that would return.
On contact sports such as soccer and rugby, he said these sporting sectors were not to return to sport yet, but athletes were free to resume training.
“In each instance stringent requirements have been agreed will need to be put in place before any activity can reopen," Ramaphosa said.
On contact sports such as soccer and rugby, he said these sporting sectors were not to return to sport yet, but athletes were free to resume training.
“In each instance stringent requirements have been agreed will need to be put in place before any activity can reopen. These protocols are to be strictly adhered to. Announcements will be made in due course for the date these will be permitted,” he said.
Ramaphosa said the decision had been taken with "due care’ and ‘seriousness".
He said the decision to reopen the industries was taken strongly in mind, with over 500 000 people who had been employed in these sectors before the lockdown.
“This is a global pandemic and most countries are facing exactly the same challenges. We must find ways to resolve the dilemmas we are facing,” he said.