The government’s roll back of COVID-19 restrictions will continue next month with the reopening of schools and the restart of sporting events, according to the new COVID-19 Emergency Measures, which are due to take effect from tomorrow.
Under the COVID-19 Emergency Measures (No. 11), which will take effect from November 1st to November 30th, schools can be reopened by the Ministry of Education as long as they are in compliance with the measures under the emergency notice. “The Ministry of Education may issue guidelines or give any instruction to minimize the risks of coronavirus transmission in schools,” the measures, which have been gazetted, state.
They further added that schools will have to comply with any other guidelines issued by the Education Ministry, which is expected to make an announcement today.
Schools have been closed for almost eight months due to the local outbreak of COVID-19.
The government has faced criticism over its decision to proceed with the phased rollback of the COVID-19 restrictions to resuscitate the economy despite a rise in the number of cases and deaths in recent months.
During Friday’s COVID-19 update, the Department of Public Information reported, Minister of Health Dr Frank Anthony said persons have, largely, been observing the measures, although he admitted some challenges with gatherings. “I think we have seen improvements, and with Operation COVI-CURB, we have seen more people wearing masks, but we need to take that up to 90, to 100 per cent. So, we need to keep working on this and we need everybody to be involved in complying with mask wearing,” he was quoted as saying.
The updated measures also allow for the holding of sporting events although they must be subject to the approval of the Ministry of Health. Those events, the measures state, should be in compliance with any measures that are issued by the Health Ministry. “Every person or organizer hosting an approved sporting event shall be responsible for ensuring that the measures under this notice as well as any guidelines that the Ministry of Health may issue are complied with,” they add.
Additionally, gyms are now allowed to be opened during non-curfew hours but only at 50% capacity of the building and by appointments only so as to minimise the risk of the spread of COVID-19. The measures say that the operator of the establishment is responsible for ensuring that staff and customers comply with the notice and other guidelines from the Ministry of Health.
Also of note is that services of the country’s two major airports, the Cheddi Jagan International Airport and the Eugene F. Correia International Airport, have been classified as essential services, which will permit their operations during curfew hours.
Meanwhile, special measures remain for regions One and Nine, which restricts non-essential travel into those regions during the period of November 1st to 30th. Gatherings in those regions cannot exceed five persons and physical distancing protocols must be observed at those events.
There are still restrictions on social activities like private parties, bars, clubs, cinemas (except for drive-ins) and recreational activities at rivers, creeks and beaches.
The national curfew remains in place, although the hours have been reduced to 10.30 pm to 4 am, while masks remain mandatory for all persons in public spaces.
