Maldives observes surge in covid-19 caseload

Maldives has observed a surge in the weekly Covid-19 numbers reported across the country.

This was revealed by the Health Protection Agency (HPA) in its latest figures publicized on Monday.

As such, over the past week, Maldives confirmed 16 new Covid-19 infections, out of which 12 cases were confirmed from the Greater Malé Region and the remaining four were detected from others including industrial islands, liveaboard vessels and resorts.

No new infections were reported from residential islands outside of the capital between March 19 – 25.

The week before that, Maldives confirmed 11 new covid-19 cases.

During the reporting period, the public health authority also recorded two new hospital admissions.

With this development, Maldives Covid-19 case tally currently sits at 185,771.

No new fatalities were reported from Covid-19 this past week, which means that the coronavirus death toll remains at 311.

Maldives reported its first Covid-19 fatality in April 2020.

Another surge in Covid-19 cases comes at a time the country has welcomed the fasting month of Ramadan. This is the fourth Ramadan Maldives is observing since the Covid-19 pandemic broke out in 2020.

That year, Maldivians faced major difficulties and immense losses from the economic downturn due to the restrictions in the face of the pandemic, especially during the fasting month. The country also observed a lockdown period during the fasting month.

There was a rise in the Covid-19 caseload in the past year as well, however cases began dropping a few months later.

With the alarming increase in the caseload once again, the public is advised to keep public and open spaces clean and disinfected at all times, on a regular basis.

The public health authority has also urged the public to get their vaccine doses against Covid-19, stressing on the importance of regular sanitization and hand-washing.

HPA went on to encourage the public to continue the use of face masks if they are considered high risk or have high risk individuals in their circle, when out in public, if they exhibit symptoms, if they attend gatherings or events with large crowds of people, while using public transport vehicles like taxis, busses and ferries as well as while attending indoor activities and other places where public services are provided. This comes at a time the authority has also urged caution against the increasing air pollution across several regions in the country.

Maldives has been experiencing a surge in common cold cases as well of recent, due to the adverse effects of the severe weather conditions. Hence, it is important to follow safety precautions. As places that provide healthcare services are usually filled with high-risk individuals, HPA has urged the people to wear face masks when visiting hospitals health centers and clinics for the safety of everyone. The public health authority has also urged the people to limit hospital visitations and not visit hospitals unless necessary.

HPA announced a number of measures to tighten health and safety restrictions in a bid to curb the spread of Covid-19 across the island nation earlier this year.

The state of public health emergency declared nationwide on 12 March 2020, was dissolved starting 13 March 2022.