- A total of 227 babies were delivered by noon on Christmas Day.
- Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital delivered 27 babies.
- Gauteng Health MEC and the Home Affairs deputy minister visited Carletonville Hospital and Leratong Hospital on Christmas morning.
Gauteng hospitals had delivered 227 babies by noon on Christmas Day.
Gauteng Health MEC Dr Nomathemba Mokgethi and Home Affairs Deputy Minister Njabulo Nzuza visited newborn babies at Carletonville Hospital and Leratong Hospital on Christmas morning and encouraged the new mothers to register their children at the hospital's Home Affairs facilities.
Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital and Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital delivered a combined total of 47 babies, while tertiary, regional and district hospitals delivered 135 babies combined and Community Health Centres 45 babies.
The KwaZulu-Natal department of health has expressed concerns over teenage mothers who gave birth as health MEC Nomagugu Simelane-Zulu welcomed Christmas babies. | @Lwandi_N https://t.co/pDls3yGv5y
— News24 (@News24) December 25, 2020
The MEC and the deputy minister visited some of the newborns, bearing gifts and spreading Christmas cheer.
"Congratulations to all the mothers and their partners for their newborn babies. This year is very different as we operate under Covid-19 conditions and we are not able to celebrate the newborn babies the way we are used to," said Mokgethi.
Mokgethi also commended health workers for their hard work.
"They are a beacon of hope in a very difficult period. Generations will salute them for their selfless service in the midst of a global pandemic," she said.