Maldives reported 97 new Covid-19 cases and 95 additional recoveries by sundown on Thursday.

According to the latest figures publicized by the Health Protection Agency (HPA), 59 out of the 97 new cases were confirmed from residential islands outside of the Maldives congested capital, Malé City where 22 new infections were detected. The remaining 16 were confirmed from operational resorts.

The public health authorities tested 4,191 samples between 6pm Wednesday and 6pm Thursday.

Maldives active Covid-19 cases have risen to 2,011 with this development.

By sundown on Thursday Maldives total Covid-19 case count rose to 93,629.

With the additional recoveries, the total number of patients who have recovered from the virus so far in the Maldives has risen to 91,346.

In the reporting period hospital admissions dropped to 16, with seven patients released from hospitals.

Maldives reported its first Covid-19 fatality in April 2020 and since then, the death toll has risen to 259. The latest victim was identified as a Maldivian man aged 62. Nine Covid-19 fatalities have been reported so far in December.

Maldives confirmed the first case of the new, more transmissible variant of Covid-19, ‘Omicron’ on December 5.

HPA highlighted that the first case of the new variant was confirmed through genome sequencing of a tourist that arrived in the Maldives from South Africa on November 21.

The public health authority urged caution over the confirmation of ‘Omicron’ in the Maldives, pushing the public to take the necessary precautions for their safety and for the safety of others and to pay special heed to the instructions and guidelines set forth by the authorities.

HPA stressed on the importance of adhering to safety measures to avoid another Covid-19 wave from hitting the Maldives and urged the public to provide their full support and cooperation in helping authorities curb the spread of the infection.

The public health authorities have urged the public to get their vaccination doses, adhere to guidelines set place in hosting events and gatherings and even in the work environment to prevent the risk of widespread infection.

This comes at a time the government imposed a ban on travel from seven countries in Africa recently, triggered by the threats ‘Omicron’. Travelers have been banned from South Africa, Namibia, Mozambique, Lesotho, Botswana, Zimbabwe and Eswatini, including those who visited these countries 14 days before arriving into the Maldives, as well as those who transited in these countries for more than 12 hours.

Further, the announcement reads that those who have travelled to the Maldives after spending more than 14 days in these countries and over 12 hours in transit, must observe a quarantine period of 14 days.

These new measures have been implemented at a time President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has also revealed that there have been surging concerns regarding the more transmissible ‘Omicron’ SARS-CoV-2 variant.

Research indicates that those who have recovered from Covid-19 are at a high risk of contracting the new variant, dubbed a “variant of concern” by the World Health Organization (WHO).

The country has been in a state of public health emergency for over a year, since 12 March 2020. It was extended a 21st time to expire on December 30.