Minister of Trade, Industry and Economic Development, Ebrahim Patel, recently announced that his department had extended the list of businesses that constitute an ‘essential service’ and will be allowed to continue with limited operation during the national COVID-19 lockdown.
More than 50 000 entities employing 1,5 million workers applied to register their companies as providers of essential services through an online platform set up by the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC), which has awarded over 40 000 permits to date.
While these organisations are supplying goods and services to keep the country going, they will also require assistance to keep their operations running efficiently. Managing director for RS Components in South Africa, Brian Andrew, said that it was imperative for these registered entities to remain operational during the lockdown and has ensured that RS Components has also been certified to operate in this period. The company is an e-commerce distributor that supports companies with their maintenance, repair and day-to-day operational requirements. RS Components provides PPE (personal protection equipment) products, test and measurement devices, automation and control gear, hand tools and hygiene products for manufacturing and other industrial sectors including power, sanitation, food and beverage, pharmaceuticals, logistics and ICT businesses.
“We are here to support customers who fall into the essential services categories and that can provide the necessary documentation,” he added. “We do not want them to experience any downtime that may further impact or slow down their commitment to South Africans.
“Following the announcement by President Cyril Ramaphosa last week, our trade counter was immediately closed to the public and we have made provisions for our customer services and technical teams to work from the safety of their homes. Our website allows customers to place orders online and we have put strict guidelines in place for our warehouse and logistics partners to adhere to proper hygiene practices and to maintain safe social distance.”
RS Components is globally supporting essential services in the countries in which it operates. “With so much at stake, we are committed to doing our part to try and keep our customers’ operations running smoothly so that the people and organisations that really need these goods and services have access to them,” concluded Andrew.
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