BULAWAYO – Primary and Secondary Education minister Cain Mathema has been hospitalised after contracting Covid-19.

The 74-year-old is “stable” at a private hospital in Bulawayo, a source told ZimLive.

Mathema’s last known public engagement was a tour of Loreto High School in Silobela on August 6.

A source briefed on his illness said: “It’s been a rough few days for him. He’s relatively stable, he’s battling.”

Zimbabwe recorded 404 new Covid-19 infections and 17 deaths on Thursday. The ministry of health says 417 people are hospitalised with the virus, 38 of them considered severe and 19 are in the intensive care unit.

At least 4,198 Zimbabweans have died from 121,902 infections since the respiratory illness was first detected in March last year.