North Macedonia is expected to tighten restriction measures to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.
The measures are expected to be approved by the government on Tuesday. The daily curfew is proposed to start on Wednesday from 22:00 to 05:00.
These restrictions have been proposed by the Infectious Diseases Commission, because of high rates of people infected with the virus over the last three weeks.
Health Minister Venko Filipce announced that “the Coronavirus restrictions will be implemented at least for two weeks. The aim of the restriction of movement is to slow down the current infection rate by preventing people gathering in groups”.
According to him, it has been observed that the measures until now are not being respected in the late hours, in restaurants and public areas.
“The measures are not being respected and we have an increase of infected people with COVID-19”, the ministry of Health said on Monday.
“Clinics in Skopje are ready to hospitalize patients with COVID-19. Hospitals are not as full as they were in November. We want to maintain the current situation”, he said.
“There are divided opinions among epidemiologists on this issue. We have to be careful and prepared. We are monitoring the situation if it changes” Filipce announced.
North Macedonia received 3,000 Russian Sputnik V vaccines on Sunday. Another 200,000 doses have been ordered from Russia.
The country has so far received about 8,000 doses of vaccines from the American company Pfizer, as a donation from Serbia.
More than 107,000 people have been diagnosed with the coronavirus since the outbreak of the pandemic in North Macedonia.
3,195 people have lost their lives, about 95,000 have recovered while about 9,300 cases are active.
