Las fronteras marroquíes seguirán cerradas

The Ministry of Health of the Kingdom of Morocco has had to deny certain information in a statement, due to the fact that several newspapers and news portals have been talking for a few days about the possible reopening of all borders. In particular, these news outlets reported that the Scientific and Technical Committee, which is in charge of managing the coronavirus and the measures and restrictions imposed by the virus, had not renewed its mandate and that both the air and sea borders would be reopened as of 13 December. Everything would return to normal with the sole exception that the air borders with the southern regions of Africa would remain in force because that is where the new Omicron variant of COVID-19 is born.

For its part, the Ministry, due to the influx of these reports, has had to deny the facts in a statement circulated by the official Moroccan news agency MAP News. The government department affirms that these reports are completely false and untrue, as no directive has been issued either by the committees in charge of this management, or by the government of the Alawi country. 

The communiqué also explained that the Committee meets every week to assess and evaluate the situation of the pandemic, both in the country itself and internationally, and affirms that for the time being the steps will remain closed until the situation calms down and normalises.

In the same document, the department also called on its citizens to continue to respect the measures and to ensure the safety of themselves and others. "The resurgence of the epidemic remains possible, especially with the emergence of the new Omicron variant," added the COVID-19 Scientific and Technical Committee. 

Morocco decided to suspend flights and sea routes from abroad at the end of November last year, due to the progress of the emergence of a new strain of the coronavirus, the Omicron variant. The inter-ministerial committee in charge of ensuring measures for foreign travel to prevent infection in the Maghreb country took this decision immediately to ensure the health of Moroccans. "Morocco's achievements in the fight against the pandemic must be preserved and the health of its citizens must be protected," the delegation said. The decision, risky but well motivated, has attracted tourists from all over the world, while leaving Moroccan citizens outside the borders of the Kingdom, which is causing a stir. There has also been a reminder of the importance of vaccination for all inhabitants.

This rule was originally intended to last for 15 days, but the global spread of Omicron and the rapid increase in cases is still in place until further notice. This variant has once again hit one of the hardest hit sectors in the world, and therefore in Morocco. Tourism, which was gradually recovering from the effects of the pandemic, restrictions and confinements, is once again suffering a new setback that will lead to huge economic losses. 

According to the latest data collected by the government, the Maghreb country currently has almost one million confirmed cases of the coronavirus, with the number of sick people increasing every day. However, there have been no deaths from the virus in the last day. In the last 14 days, the rate of coronavirus infection in the population is 4.52%. Since the beginning of the pandemic, the country has now recorded 14,788 deaths from the virus, so concern is high that Omicron is affecting the safety of its citizens. 

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has already described this new variant as dangerous and has also warned that its transmission could lead to a higher risk of reinfection, as vaccines have little resistance.