Places of worship across the country will be permitted to reopen from August 1 under updated COVID-19 emergency measures that have been gazetted as part of phase four of Guyana’s reopening.
The updated measures, which will be in effect from August 1st to August 15th, will see places of religious worship opened for religious services and gatherings, including the conduct of funerals and weddings.
However, gatherings are restricted to 25% of the building capacity and where there are multiple services, there should be no less than forty-five minutes between each service to allow for sanitisation and cleaning of the facilities. All guidelines that were implemented by the Health Ministry to slow the spread of COVID-19 must be followed.
Additionally, five more Region Seven communities – Eteringbang, Makapa, Kurushi, Arau and Oko – will be under lockdown as part of efforts to contain COVID-19 in the region’s mining areas, which have seen spikes in cases. Mining has also been halted in these areas. Two other communities in the region, Aranka and Arangoy Landing, which had been under lockdown, have been notably removed from the lockdown list. The lockdown measures have been extended for Moruca, in Region One, which is another hotspot. A 6 pm to 6 am curfew remains in effect in those communities in which lockdowns have been effected.
Additionally, the Kurupukari Crossing in Region Nine will be closed except during the hours of 6 am to 5 pm to facilitate the passage of essential services and supplies.
Under the measures, the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA), Timehri and the Eugene F. Correia International Airport will remain closed to all international flights during this period except for outgoing flights, cargo flights, medical evacuation flights and technical stops for fuel along with authorized flights.
The national curfew, from 8 pm to 6 pm, will remain in effect nationwide with the exception of Regions Five and Six, where it will only be in effect on weekends, while wearing a mask is still mandatory in public spaces.
Any person who fails to comply with any of the measures outlined commits an offence under section 152 of the Public Health ordinance and is liable on summary conviction to the penalty provided under said section.
