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COVID-19: Parties, events and other ceremonies prohibited

The Health Protection Agency (HPA) has announced that parties, events and other ceremonies cannot be held in the Greater Male’ Region effective from January 27.

Strict precautionary measures were imposed on the Greater Male’ Region in a bid to combat the COVID-19 pandemic last year. The restrictions were later relaxed in stages as the COVID-19 situation improved in the Maldives. However, the number of positive cases recorded in the Maldives have been on the rise over the past few weeks, with 145 positive cases recorded over the past 24 hours.

An announcement signed by the Director General of Public Health, Maimoona Abobakuru said parties, events and other ceremonies can no longer be held in the Greater Male’ Region until further notice. The decision comes while a cluster of 100 positive cases linked to a wedding party held in the capital was identified recently. A large number of positive cases registered over the past 24 hours are also linked to a large family gathering.

HPA also imposed other restrictive measures on Wednesday, including the implementation of a curfew in the Greater Male’ Region from 12:00 am to 04:00 am. International arrivals in the Maldives excluding tourists will now be required to quarantine themselves for ten days upon arrival in the Maldives.

The number of cases being registered in the Maldives has been on the rise since the beginning of the year. While over 1,200 cases were identified in the Maldives during the first 24 days of the year, three deaths were recorded during this period.