South Africas feel the pain as economy hit by virus

With her winning smile and outgoing nature, Fino Dlamini was a natural to succeed in South Africa's booming tourism industry. Business was good in January and February, and projections for the rest of 2020 were excellent.

Then the coronavirus brought everything to an abrupt halt.

The 34-year-old entrepreneur from Soweto, South Africa's largest township, only started her business in October 2019.

She was offering bicycle tours of Soweto and took visitors to historic sites, including the homes of Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and to restaurants where they could meet residents.

The tourists and locals would quickly connect over shared interests in sports or TV shows, forming instant bonds.

But Dlamini now has 25 bicycles, a vehicle and a trailer that are idle.

She is thinking about using the trailer and the office to turn it into a butchery and deliver food.

Millions of South Africans share in the same misfortune as Dlamini.

The country with the continent's most developed economy also has its highest number of infections - more than 21,000 - and leaders are struggling to protect public health while also permitting economic activity essential to the national welfare.

The lockdown that began March 27 is increasing tensions in Soweto and putting further pressure on the country's already vulnerable economy.

Five weeks into the lockdown, South Africa began a gradual easing on May 1, allowing selected mines, factories and businesses to reopen with up to 30% of employees.

Many shops have reopened and restaurants can serve takeaway meals, but the economy, already in recession, keeps plummeting.

Lines of hungry South Africans stretch for miles at sites where the government or charities distribute food.

The unemployment rate was at a staggering 29% even before the virus hit.

University of Witwatersrand professor Francois Venter said some of the government's decisions in containing the virus "haven't made sense" but it was now seeking to lift a "severe" lockdown slowly without risking another rise in infections.