Western Cape Premier Alan Winde wants a time and date set for the end to the Covid-19 state of disaster so that recovery can get into full swing. 

"To be clear: we want the date and the time, and not generalised commitments," he said during his State of the Province Address delivered in Velddrif on Tuesday. 

Winde said unemployment in the Western Cape had increased by 132 000 from the first quarter of 2020 to the third quarter of 2021, and the percentage of households with adults present who go hungry had increased from 11.3% in 2019 to 17% in 2020.

"This year, things have to change."

He warned that there would be no going "back to normal" after the damage caused by the pandemic and the increased demands on the government. 

"I often hear people say: 'I wish we could go back to normal. You know, the way things were before'.

"I completely understand the sentiment - in comparison to lockdowns, loss of life, and economic hardship, the past can look appealing.

"But I must respectfully disagree."

South Africa has been in various alert levels since they were first instituted under the Disaster Management Act from midnight 26 March 2020.

At Level 5, non-essential businesses had to close, schools went into a long recess, and alcohol and cigarettes were banned. 

The point of this was to reduce virus transmission to cope with the anticipated high demand on hospitals, based on admissions patterns observed in the US and Europe. 

At one point, exercise and the sale of hot food were not permitted. Schools this year stopped rotational schooling, but many institutions are still limiting numbers based on the social distancing rules for public venues.

Winde said that data provided by the province's Department of Health showed that 90% of people surveyed in a seroprevalence study in November 2021 had developed protection against Covid-19, either through vaccination or prior infection. 

The Omicron variant caused less severe outcomes. Despite having the highest number of cases at the peak of the fourth wave, hospitalisations, oxygen usage, and deaths in the province remained relatively low. 

"This new stage provides us with a window of opportunity to make the bold changes that are now needed, so that we push back against going back to normal and so that we push forward, to do even better."

Winde said he had requested a meeting with President Cyril Ramaphosa to discuss timelines for lifting the state of disaster, after the president hinted at ending it in the coming months. 

Ramaphosa said in his State of the Nation Address that the state of disaster would be lifted, but that other health measures had to be put in place first.