Why some Angolans are defying coronavirus lockdown

President Joao Lourenco of Angola recently declared a state of health emergency and ordered a 15-day lockdown across the southern African country.

A key plank of the measure being that traffic on public roads is prohibited except in emergencies. The move being part of efforts to contain the coronavirus outbreak.

But residents in the capital Luanda are struggling and as a result breaking some of the lockdown rules. With no access to basic goods, water, some residents vow to keep on working to make ends meet.

One such is Quechin ha Paulina: “I ordered water from the truck, but it’s been two weeks and it hasn’t arrived. So today I got up at 3 am to buy. I don’t have any money at the moment. I have children, I’m a widow and I’m receiving social assistance.”

In the face of falling oil prices and an economy that has been in recession for the past five years, everyone is doing their part to keep their families alive during the lockdown.

For his part, taxi driver Domingos João said: “The disease is dangerous, we can see that. Everyone sees it, everyone knows it. But if we stay at home, we won’t get anywhere.

“That’s why we are in the street, we work with rules, as you can see. We work with this bottle of soap and hand sanitizer. Before the passengers get on board, they are first disinfected,” he added.

As of April 3, Angola has recorded a total of 8 cases with two deaths and one recovery so far.