The National Department of Health's novel coronavirus (Covid-19) WhatsApp helpline is now available in four of South Africa's official languages – English, Sesotho, isiZulu and Afrikaans.

Initially, the service was only able to respond to English queries, but it has changed when updates were made to accommodate the three additional languages.

South Africa is on Day 3 of a 21-day lockdown, aimed at curbing the spread of the virus, which first emerged in Wuhan, China, in December 2019.

On Saturday, Health Minister Zweli Mkhize announced that the number of positive cases in South Africa had climbed to 1 187 – an increase of 17 compared to the figure given on Friday.

Of these, 533 are in Gauteng, 271 in the Western Cape and 156 in KwaZulu-Natal.

Stay informed on #COVID19 #CoronavirusOutbreak pic.twitter.com/NaqsN2x68K

— Department of Health (@HealthZA) March 28, 2020