Closing the gate: death, dignity & distress in the rural Eastern Cape in the time of Covid

When the Covid-19 pandemic came to South Africa in March 2020, ECSECC was called upon to support the provincial government and provincial command structures with effective and efficient decision-making through providing accurate and reliable data to guide decision-making, planning and risk mitigation. This was done in collaboration with the Department of Health and other organisations, and focused on collection, analysis and reporting of a wide range of indicators, from patient case data to emergency water provision and economic impact. To advice the provincial government and provincial command structures about measures to minimise the spread of the Covid-19 virus it was also necessary to develop a deeper understanding of peoples experiences and responses. With specific reference to funerals, which were considered high risk events, it was necessary to enable relevant role-players to develop practices and guidelines that would meet both cultural and health needs of communities. The study was initially conducted during a period of rapid and ongoing changes in risk levels and regulations between June and August 2020. As the pandemic evolved, the study has been updated numerous times. The research report is published as a monograph due to ethnographic depth and detail.