The Philippines prolonged partial coronavirus curbs in the capital and nearby provinces until mid-June to contain infections that have been decreasing since hitting a peak in April.
Religious gathering remain capped at 30 percent of venue capacity while dining in restaurants can operate at 20 percent in the capital region.
Non-essential travels remain prohibited.
Daily COVID-19 cases in the Philippines averaged roughly 6,300 for May, down by a third from April, after the government reduced operating capacity of businesses and limited the movement of people.
President Rodrigo Duterte also announced the extension of a ban on inbound travel from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Oman, and the United Arab Emirates until June 15.
The ban aims to prevent transmission of the coronavirus variant first discovered in India.
Travelers coming directly from those countries, or with a history of travel to any of them within the last 14 days, will be denied entry.
The Philippines has reported 13 COVID-19 cases tied to the more infectious Indian variant known as B.1.617.2.
The Philippines has the second-highest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in Southeast Asia, next to Indonesia.
On Monday, the Department of Health said it observed an increase in cases of COVID-19 in several areas of the country in past days.
At least 6,684 new COVID-19 cases were recorded, bringing the country’s total to 1,230,301, while there were 6,098 new recoveries and 107 additional deaths due to the disease.
Active cases stood at 54,290, or 4.4 percent of the total recorded infections.
There are now 1.155 million people in the country who recovered from COVID-19, while a total of 20,966 succumbed to the disease, said the Health department.
As of May 30, the Philippines has administered 5.12 million doses of the 8.32 million jabs that have arrived in the country. The government rolled out its vaccination program on March 1.
Some 1.18 million people have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, while 3.9 million others have received their first dose. – with a report from Reuters
Source: Licas Philippines
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