We bring George Herald to you safely

Concern has been voiced by some of our readers that, in the current lockdown to fight the spread of Covid-19, it is unsafe to continue issuing printed newspapers.

Nicole Rimbault, Group Editors operations director, has issued the following statement in this regard:

The media in all its forms (including print) has been declared an essential service as per the Disaster Management Act. Group Editors has taken extreme measures to prioritise the safety of our staff. We are also following the strict guidelines set out in the Government Gazette in terms of our operations. We are working with a skeleton staff and every employee who is out of lockdown has a valid permit as per the Act, and once again as gazetted. Rest assured that we understand the risks of spreading the virus and our operations are fully compliant with every guideline as per government instruction. All our operators use sanitisers and distribution takes place under strictly controlled conditions. Communication with communities is vital in the Covid-19 lockdown period and we are at the forefront of assisting government in sharing as much accurate, fact-based information as possible. Group Editors offers readers vital hyper-local content and insight into the impact of the virus on every community. In these difficult times we strive to serve responsibly, and with integrity. Should your concern be that a newspaper itself may pose a threat in spreading the virus, please read the following article, based on scientific proof, that your paper product is in indeed safe: https://www.georgeherald. com/News/Article/General/covid-19-onprint-202003300955