President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has stated a second lockdown will be imposed if necessary to control the spread of COVID-19 in the Maldives.
In response to a question from the press regarding the plans of the government to control the spread of COVID-19, President Solih said a lockdown is a difficult measure to impose as it hinders the daily lives of people. However, the president said he is ready to enforce a second lockdown in the country for the sake of public health and safety, if the spread of COVID-19 cannot be controlled without enforcing it. He urged the public to take the necessary precautions and follow the instructions of health authorities in order to contain the spread of COVID-19 without having to enforce a lockdown.
The Maldives is currently experiencing a second wave of COVID-19 cases, with a much higher daily average of cases compared to the first wave. Health Emergency Operation Centre (HEOC) has also warned a second lockdown may be needed if the situation does not improve in the coming days.
Speaking at a press conference held at HEOC on August 25, Dr. Ahmed Shaheed from the Technical Advisory Group (TAG) shared details of the scoring system used to assess the COVID-19 situation in the Maldives. In this regard, the doctor noted the scoring system is based on five main factors, which are the percentage of positive cases from flu clinics, percentage of hospital admissions, time taken to double the number of cases, number of cases which are not linked to existing clusters and the weekly death rate. He said a score of 1-3 is given to each factor to obtain total score, which is used as an indicator of the COVID-19 situation in the country.
The doctor noted a total score below 5 represents a good situation, while a score between 5 and 10 would mean better restrictive measures are required. He said a score above 10 represents a very bad situation where strict measures are needed to control the spread of the disease.
Noting the current score is 9, Dr. Shaheed said the score is very close to a situation where a lockdown would be necessary. However, he said the authorities are still trying to control the spread of COVID-19 without forcing a lockdown, as it would have serious impacts on the economy as well as healthcare which is not related to COVID-19.