The President of the Republic, Mr Wavel Ramkalawan chaired a meeting with the Platinum COVID-19 Committee at State House this morning, in light of the rapid increase in the number of positive COVID-19 cases in the country.
The health professionals present, briefed the Head of State on the latest information to date in relation to statistics of active cases, testing mechanisms in place and contact tracing efforts being effected. The Ministry of Health also shared with the committee other ongoing response measures and how they are currently coping with the increased pressure on the health system due to the recent surge of cases.
The meeting was also an opportunity for members present to conduct an overall assessment, devise new recommendations and propose immediate actions required in order to break the chain of transmission and contain the surge of cluster cases in the community.
The committee also collectively agreed on the revised parameters of restrictions and measures required in view of the limited adherence by the general public. To that effect, the Ministry of Health will be issuing an updated Public Order to heighten restrictions of movement and public health guidelines.
Delivering his statement to the Press after the meeting, President Ramkalawan urged each and every Seychellois to play their part by being responsible citizens in order to stop the spread of the virus. He stressed on the importance of members of the public to adhere to the safety guidelines and hygiene measures issued by the health authorities in order to ensure their own safety, that of their families and the country.
“The situation is constantly evolving and it is critical that we all play our role to mitigate the spread of coronavirus in our communities. Each one of us needs to make it our personal responsibility as citizens to ensure that we break the chain of transmission during the coming 10 days ahead.
Today, I would like to also salute all our health professionals working tirelessly in the immense task they are undertaking to ensure the situation is placed under control and to keep our population safe. I wish to reiterate my full support to the Ministry of Health and all partner agencies for the formidable work they are doing and once again urge all Seychellois to be a part of the solution” said President Ramkalawan.
The committee also discussed the possibility of the Ministry of Health preparing to initiate the Vaccination Campaign soon, in order to ensure the population is in the near future protected from any potential surge of new COVID-19 cases over the coming months.
The President also announced, that during the coming days, joint law enforcement operations by the Police and Military will intensify to ensure action is taken with anyone not respecting the public health guidelines.
More information on the situation and updated measures will be communicated by the Public Health Authority.
Present for the meeting at State House, was the Vice-President, Mr. Ahmed Afif, Designated Minister and Minister for Fisheries and the Blue Economy, Mr Jean-Francois Ferrari, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Tourism, Mr. Sylvestre Radegonde, the Minister of Health, Mrs Peggy Vidot, the Minister of Internal Affairs, Mr Roy Fonseka, the Minister of Community Development, Mrs Rose Marie Hoareau, the Commissioner of Police, Mr. Kishnan Labonte, the Chief of Defense Forces, Col. Michael Rosette, the Principal Secretary for Health, Dr Bernard Valentin, the Principal Secretary for Finance, Mr Damien Thesee, the Principal Secretary of DRDM, Mr Paul Labaleine, the CEO of the Health Care Agency, Dr Danny Louange, the Public Health Commissioner, Dr. Jude Gedeon and the Senior Policy Adviser Department of Health, Dr Conrad Shamlaye.
Following the Press Conference, President Ramkalawan also meet with Leaders in the National Assembly, namely the Speaker, Hon. Roger Mancienne, the Leader of the Opposition, Hon. Sebastien Pillay and the Leader of Government Business in the National Assembly, Hon. Bernard Georges in order to brief them on the new developments.