Supreme Committee announces new decisions: Extends night closure of commercial activities

Within its continuous sessions held to follow up the recent developments of COVID-19 in the Sultanate, the Supreme Committee has seen the presentation of the technical health team on the epidemiological status of the novel Coronavirus in Oman, with its worrying increase of cases and mortalities, and the factors leading to this concern, particularly family and social gatherings, together with travel-related reasons. Hence, to halt further spread of the pandemic, and to guard the capacity of local healthcare system, the Supreme Committee has decided the following:

• To ban direct flights from the United Kingdom, excluding air freight, and prohibit the entry of travelers who have been in or transited through the United Kingdom in the previous 14 days, effective 12 pm Friday, March 19th, 2021 until further notice, excluding Omani citizens.
• To reduce the number of employees in workplaces in units of the administrative apparatus of the state and other public legal persons to 70% only, starting from Sunday, March 21st to April 1st 2021. The Committee therefore urges all units to adhere to the preventive measures and monitor compliance with them.
• To extend the implementation of the closure imposed on all business activities in the Sultanate that is currently applicable from 8 pm to 5 am until April 3rd 2021, except for petrol stations, private health facilities and pharmacies, tire shops at petrol stations, good transport with loading and unloading, operation of factories without receiving customers, home delivery, drive-thru of restaurants, cafés, mobile cafés and authorized mobile vendors, and eventually hotel restaurants to their guests only.
• To activate volunteering across the Sultanate, in coordination with their excellencies the Walis.
• To allow the exercise of individual sports at beaches, while prohibiting any gatherings therein.

The Committee eventually calls on all to abide by these measures, and to avoid gatherings at homes or farm chalets for whatever occasion. The committee also urges public and private bodies to set their mechanism to enforce these regulations, and not to tolerate non-compliance of violators, and to impose penalties against them.