South Africa Sees Downward Trend in COVID-19 Cases Despite Conducting More Tests

Puseletso Lesofi prepares to sequence COVID-19 omicron samples at the Ndlovu Research Center in Elandsdoorn, South Africa, on Dec. 8, 2021. Jerome Delay, File/AP Photo

The number of new positive cases of COVID-19 reported in South Africa has continued its downward trend despite increased testing, according to South African National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD) data.

The NICD reported 17,154 new cases on Dec. 11, nearly 2,000 down from the 19,018 new cases reported on Dec. 10. At the same time the NICD recorded 104,831 new tests conducted on Dec. 11, which was over 20,000 more carried out than on Dec. 10.