Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) is now officially a live, medical treatment centre – dubbed "The Hospital of Hope" - as it admits its first 10 patients in Cape Town.

The eerie rows of 862 empty hospital beds - inspected by President Cyril Ramaphosa and Western Cape Premier Alan Winde on Friday last week – now have their first patients.

As the hospital is a new facility, additional beds will be activated in a phased manner until the entire hospital is fully operational."

"We have also hung a rainbow themed artwork, drawn by children in the province, above every single bed in the facility to brighten up the space and as a symbol of hope for every patient," Winde said.

This facility will create a space for people to recover, while at the same time allowing others to receive care in our other acute hospital facilities."