( 3 minutes)
· After a brief respite, Seychelles is facing again a sharp rise in the number of coronavirus infections
· The island nation has a good track record of vaccinating its people and is billed as the world’s largest vaccinated country followed by Israel
· The Indian Ocean archipelago recorded the most new cases this week
· For every 100,000, the infected persons were 1223, thereby becoming the largest proportion of people being infected in the world
After a brief respite, Seychelles is facing again a sharp rise in the number of coronavirus infections. The island nation has a good track record of vaccinating its people and is billed as the world’s largest vaccinated country followed by Israel. Though analysts say the situation is under control, the public perception is that it would adversely hit the tourism industry in the country, which accounts for close to 50% of the GDP.
The Indian Ocean archipelago recorded the most new cases this week. For every 100,000, the infected persons were 1223, thereby becoming the largest proportion of people being infected in the world. Close to 500 people were reported in the last three days taking the total number of cases to 6,373. While 1,048 cases are currently active, 28 deaths were reported.
The government announced tightening of anti-Covid measures, such as forcing shops, bars and casinos to close an hour earlier (7 pm local time), banning gatherings, shows and sports activities and extending the closure of schools until 23 May. The government sources maintain that the increase in the number of cases was due to conducting a larger number of tests. Of the 98,462 inhabitants, 61% received two doses of vaccine and 70% have received at least one. The people who are getting infected are those who are refusing to get vaccinated, according to the country’s health ministry sources.
