On Wednesday, Mauritius placed a new national lockdown that will last until March 25.
It is the second lockdown since coronavirus infections were discovered in the Indian Ocean archipelago a year ago and come as 14 new cases were registered.
“We had no other choice but total containment in order to prevent the spread of the virus and protect the population,” Prime Minister Pravind Kumar Jugnauth declared on Tuesday evening in a televised speech.
“This containment became necessary after the appearance of four new local positive cases of COVID-19, bringing to 14 the number of local positive cases registered since March 5.”
From Wednesday, only emergency services will be available, including the port, airport, medical services, and emergency relief.
Supermarkets, bakeries, gas stations, and pharmacies will be accessible in alphabetical order starting Thursday.
The Prime Minister said, “I am sure that we will be able to resume our activities as soon as possible”,
However, the opposition leaders, including former Prime Minister Navinchandra Ramgoolam, have slammed the second latest lockdown, accusing the government of “incompetence.”
