Guyana’s COVID-19 Emergency Measures were on Wednesday amended to allow for limited indoor dining at eating establishments.
This was revealed in an amendment notice in the Official Gazette which was published on Wednesday and comes just after a number of restaurants were given warnings and one was even closed by the National COVID-19 Task Force (NCTF).
A number of businesses were issued warning letters and ordered closed on Sunday by the NCTF for breaching the COVID-19 measures which at the time only permitted outdoor dining and curbside pick-up and delivery services.
However, the amendment notice which was published on Wednesday, stated that both indoor and outdoor dining are now permitted between the hours of 4 am and 9.30 pm. The amended section of the measure added that indoor dining is however, restricted to forty per cent of the capacity of the dining area.
It further added that in those establishments, tables are to be spaced six feet apart and no more than four persons will be allowed to be seated at one table. Those persons it says, should be seated at least three feet apart.
Meanwhile it noted that the measures in the amendment apply to all restaurants that are permitted to operate in accordance with the safety measures. The Guyana Tourism Authority has been tasked with the responsibility for monitoring all those restaurants to ensure that the new measures are implemented.
Head of the NCTF, Prime Minister Mark Phillips, had previously told Stabroek News prior to the amendment of the measures that a number of bars and indoor dining facilities were found to be in breach of the previous protocols and were ordered closed.
