Journalist Mia Malan says that the latest figures show that hospital admissions because of the virus have increased by more than 200% this week, compared to last week.

In a series of tweets highlighting the minister's comments, she also said that the reproductive number - sometimes called the 'R rate' - for Omicron is 2.5. In other words, on average, one person infects another 2.5 people.

This is higher than with Delta, reflecting a theory that it is more transmissible.

https://twitter.com/miamalan/status/1469201005661331458?s=20

On Thursday, South Africa recorded more than 22,000 Covid-19 infections. This is a high figure, but below the high-point of 26,000 daily infections reported during the previous wave of infections, the Reuters news agency reports.

About 38% of South Africans have been vaccinated against coronavirus.