Morocco-COVID-19: State of health emergency extended until Nov. 30

The Council of Government, convened Thursday in Rabat, decided to extend the state of health emergency throughout the country until November 30, 2021, as part of efforts to stem the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic.

 

The state of health emergency has been extended for one month instead of two, as was previously the case, said the government spokesman, Mustapha Baitas, at a press briefing held after the Council’s meeting.

 

The state of health emergency, in force since March 2020 and that was scheduled to expire on October 31, 2021, seeks to preserve the progress made by Morocco in fighting the pandemic and minimize the danger related to the virus variants.

 

The state of health emergency enables the government to make swift, necessary decisions to curb the spread of COVID-19.

 

This umpteenth extension of the state of health emergency comes at a time Morocco is experiencing a decrease in daily COVID-19 cases, the North African country having recorded lately less than 500 cases a day and fewer fatalities.

The progress was made possible thanks to the steady continuation of the vaccination campaign, that enabled to inoculate some thirty million people.

Actually, Morocco counts 21,936,348 fully vaccinated people, i.e. people who have received two jabs, while those who have received the first dose of the vaccine reached nearly 3 million. Meanwhile, over 1,320,000 people receive a 3rd Dose, according to figures released by the Health Ministry Thursday.

 

The total number of COVID-19 cases reported since the start of the outbreak of the virus in March 2020 stands at 945,504 while recoveries rise to 925,820, i.e. a recovery rate of 97.9%.

 

Coronavirus-related fatalities rose to 14.654.

 

The number of active cases stands at 5,030, including 290 people in a critical or severe condition, the ministry said.