The government has announced further relaxation in COVID-19 restrictions as vaccination rates rise and new infections fall.
The Cabinet has said that starting next week, all employees in the public and private sectors can return to their workplaces. Unvaccinated workers are required to take a rapid antigen test on a weekly basis. Face mask rules have also been relaxed. People are no longer required to wear masks in open public spaces, except at organised public activities and events. Masks also remain mandatory at mosques, schools, universities and hospitals. All workers in establishments whose nature of work requires being in open spaces and communicating with customers must wear masks during their work period. Ablution areas at mosques will reopen and shopping malls can operate at full capacity. However, food courts inside malls will continue operating at half their capacity.
Restaurants and cafes that meet the conditions set by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry can operate with a maximum capacity of 40 percent. All customers must be fully vaccinated and children under 12 can only enter with their families. Similarly, restrictions have also been eased for weddings and other gatherings at homes, majlises, and at recreational places. However, limit on four passengers, including the driver, in a car remains, with the exception of family members.
Further easing in pandemic-related curbs comes as the country’s vaccination campaign moves along smoothly. According to the Ministry of Public Health, 81.7 percent of Qatar’s total population is now fully vaccinated against COVID-19 with two doses. To date, more than 4.7 million COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered.
New daily local COVID-19 cases have fallen and remained below 100 for the last several weeks, thanks to increasing vaccination rates, coupled with strict compliance with the precautionary measures and effective hotel quarantine rules for travellers from high-risk countries. Qatar has been lauded for its handling of the pandemic from day one. The country moved quickly and raised the capacity of its healthcare system to ensure each patient received the quality healthcare during the height of the pandemic. The health authorities also put in place massive COVID-19 testing facilities and arranged quarantine accommodations for tens of thousands of people. Qatar’s well-prepared healthcare system saved many lives during the pandemic. COVID-19 mortality rate in Qatar, 605 from around 237,000 COVID-19 cases reported in the country, remains one of the lowest in the world.
As COVID-19 cases fall and restrictions are further eased, people must continue to follow all the preventive measures announced by the authorities as officials say two highly contagious and highly virulent strains of the virus are actively circulating in the community.
