Maldives has yet to control the spread of Covid-19.
Spokesperson at the Health Emergency Operations Centre (HEOC), Dr. Nazla Rafeeq stated this during Wednesday night’s Covid-19 press briefing, and emphasized that over 100 new cases have been detected almost daily, for the past few weeks.
Further highlighting that the incubation period for Covid-19 is 14 days, the doctor said that results of the current precautionary measures can only be seen after about three weeks.
While Maldives began lockdown easing on May 29, this was followed by a surge in cases especially during the third phase in July. This led to the reintroduction of a curfew in the greater Malé region and face masks have been compulsory in public since August 1.
Further speaking on the spike in cases detected, Dr. Nazla appealed to all to follow all infection prevention measures including handwashing.
Maldives’ first Covid-19 cases were confirmed from resort islands in March, and a community transmission was detected in the capital on April 15.
The country has seen over 6,000 Covid-19 cases thus far, and there are 2,413 active cases currently.