Rwanda announced Monday its highest number of new Covid-19 cases in one month, with health officials attributing the rise to an outbreak of the highly transmissible Omicron variant.
Following the outbreak, authorities have extended a 10:00 p.m. to 4:00 a.m. curfew which will come into effect on Monday, amid a surge in COVID-19 infections.
An official communique from the Prime Minister’s office also announced the closure of night clubs and mandated quarantine for all passengers arriving into the country.
Other measures include a cap on attendance at social gatherings to 30 percent of the venue’s capacity, compulsory vaccination requirement for persons wishing to attend conferences and meetings and the closure of all businesses by 9 pm.
Bars, restaurants, and all services held at places of worship are allowed to continue operations, but they are restricted on the number of people they host.
The new guidelines that will be reviewed after two weeks are marked with stringent protocols against the highly contagious disease.
They include mandatory Covid-19 health certificates for people to access some public places and sanctions for people who fault guidelines.
The statement added that traditional, civil and religious wedding ceremonies should not exceed 40 persons in Kigali and 75 in other provinces while those conducted in homes won’t exceed 20 people under the supervision of local authorities.
Event organizers, the communique said, are liable to be penalized once the measures are not implemented efficiently.
More than 30% of Rwanda’s population has received a COVID vaccine. officials said
CU/abj/APA