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The fast-spreading coronavirus variant is casting a shadow over the region’s recovery.
People dressed in masks shop at a fish market in Bangkok, Thailand, Dec. 15, 2021.
The Thai government raised its COVID-19 alert point in reaction to the continued spread of the Omicron variant of the disease. Kiattiphum Wongrajit, permanent secretary of Thailand’s Ministry of Public Health, told reporters that the government was raising its alert point from 3 to 4. following a sharp rise in daily infections since the beginning of the year.
This provides the government with the leverage to introduce a series of stricter restrictions on national or public gatherings. “Thailand has entered a new wave of infections, where new cases are going to increase rapidly,” Kiattiphum said. “Level 4 means we can close high-risk and announce more measures. “
Thailand reported 5,775 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, up from just 63 on Dec. 20, when Thailand detected its first locally transmitted case of the Omicron variant. While Omicron cases account for only about one-fifth of the country’s total, the discovery of the fast-spreading strain of the virus prompted the Thai government to suspend the quarantine-free program for vaccinated visitors, which ran this week until the end of January.
The Thai government is now concerned that the country could face “tens of thousands” of new COVID-19 cases, casting a deep shadow over the country’s short-term economic prospects. As I wrote earlier this week, by disrupting the reopening of Thailand’s economically important economies in the tourism industry, the new variant could have a serious effect on the country’s economic recovery from the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Yesterday it became clear that Thailand’s central bank harbors similar fears. According to the minutes of the central bank’s latest policy meeting, the bank believes that the Omicron variant could have a larger and longer-lasting effect on the country’s economy. recovery than expected. Although, in the base case, the Omicron outbreak would not derail Thailand’s overall economic recovery, the outbreak scenario remained highly uncertain.
Thailand’s Omicron disruptions mirror those facing the region as a whole. While the number of cases is still far lower than countries like the United States, which earlier this week set a new world record of more than 1 million COVID-19 cases, the new variant continues to raise concerns across Southeast Asia.
In the Philippines, where infections hit a three-month high this week, President Rodrigo Duterte warned that other unvaccinated people would be arrested if they disobeyed stay-at-home orders as infections hit a three-month high. If you leave your space and walk through the community, you may be pulled over. If he refuses, the captain now has the authority to arrest other recalcitrant people,” Duterte said, according to Reuters.
The Philippines reported 17,220 COVID-19 cases yesterday, the highest number since September 26. While only 43 of those cases were of the Omicron variant, its emergence this week prompted the government to tighten restrictions in Metro Manila.
In Malaysia, the government just approved the Pfizer vaccine for children aged five to 11 and last week reduced wait times to inspire more people to get a booster dose and protect themselves against the Omicron variant. The spread of Omicron also remains contained in Indonesia. The country has only recorded about 250 cases of Omicron, most of which, like Malaysia, have been imported from abroad.
But having recovered slightly from last year’s severe outbreaks, Jakarta will not be at risk. While a government-commissioned survey found that more than 85% of Indonesia’s population possesses antibodies opposed to COVID-19, a testament to the scale of last year’s outbreaks, which were widely believed to be worse than official figures; Epidemiologists say that’s not the case. It is clear whether this immunity may simply imply a new wave of infections.
Southeast Asia as a whole has yet to enjoy the Omicron waves that are sweeping North America and Western Europe lately. But while progress in immunization in the region has been substantial, widespread policy has yet to be achieved in the most populous countries. According to the Our World In Data vaccine tracking system, only 42% of its population has been vaccinated, the Philippines 46%, Vietnam 57% and Thailand 65%. After recently recovering from severe outbreaks in the middle of last year, the region is at the breaking point of a COVID-19 relapse, in part due to points beyond its control.
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Thailand’s government yesterday raised its COVID-19 alert level in response to a continued steady spread of the Omicron variant of the disease. Kiattiphum Wongrajit, permanent secretary of the Thai Ministry of Public Health, told reporters that the government was raising its alert level from level three to four following a sharp rise in daily infections since the beginning of the year.
This provides the government with the strength to introduce a series of stricter restrictions on national or public gatherings. “Thailand has entered a new wave of infections, where new cases are going to increase rapidly,” Kiattiphum said. “Level 4 means we can close high – it puts risk and announces more measures. “
Thailand reported 5,775 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, up from just 63 on Dec. 20, when Thailand detected its first locally transmitted case of the Omicron variant. While Omicron cases account for only about one-fifth of the country’s total, the discovery of the fast-spreading strain of the virus prompted the Thai government to suspend the quarantine-free program for vaccinated visitors, which ran this week until the end of January.
The Thai government is now concerned that the country could face “tens of thousands” of new COVID-19 cases, casting a deep shadow over the country’s short-term economic prospects. As I wrote earlier this week, by disrupting the reopening of Thailand’s economically important economies in the tourism industry, the new variant could have a serious effect on the country’s economic recovery from the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Yesterday it became clear that Thailand’s central bank harbors similar fears. According to the minutes of the central bank’s latest policy meeting, the bank believes that the Omicron variant could have a larger and more lasting effect on the country’s economy. recovery of what was expected. Although, in the baseline scenario, the omicron outbreak would not derail Thailand’s overall economic recovery, the outbreak scenario remained highly uncertain.
Thailand’s existing Omicron disruptions mirror those facing the region as a whole. Although the number of cases is still much lower than in countries such as the United States, which this week set a new world record of more than one million COVID-19 cases. 19 times, the new variant continues to cause fear across Southeast Asia.
In the Philippines, where infections hit a three-month high this week, President Rodrigo Duterte warned that other unvaccinated people would be arrested if they disobeyed stay-at-home orders as infections hit a three-month high. If you leave your space and walk through the community, you may be pulled over. If he refuses, the captain now has the authority to arrest other recalcitrant people,” Duterte said, according to Reuters.
The Philippines reported 17,220 COVID-19 cases yesterday, the highest number since September 26. While only 43 of those cases were of the Omicron variant, its emergence this week prompted the government to tighten restrictions in Metro Manila.
In Malaysia, the government just approved the Pfizer vaccine for children aged five to 11 and last week reduced wait times to inspire more people to get a booster dose and protect themselves against the Omicron variant. The spread of Omicron also remains contained in Indonesia. The country has only recorded about 250 cases of Omicron, most of which, like Malaysia, have been imported from abroad.
But having recovered slightly from last year’s severe outbreaks, Jakarta will not be at risk. While a government-commissioned survey found that more than 85% of Indonesia’s population possesses antibodies to COVID-19, a testament to the scale of last year’s outbreaks, which were widely believed to be worse than official figures; Epidemiologists say that’s not the case. It is clear whether this immunity may simply imply a new wave of infections.
As a whole, Southeast Asia is yet to experience the Omicron waves that are currently crashing across North America and Western Europe. But while the region’s vaccination progress has been substantial, it remains short of widespread coverage in the most populous nations. Indonesia has fully vaccinated just 42 percent of its population, the Philippines 46 percent, Vietnam 57 percent, and Thailand 65 percent, according to the Our World In Data vaccine tracker. Having only recently recovered from the serious outbreaks that scarred the middle of last year, the region sits on the brink, in part due to factors out of its control, of a COVID-19 relapse.
The Thai government raised its COVID-19 alert point in reaction to the continued spread of the Omicron variant of the disease. Kiattiphum Wongrajit, permanent secretary of Thailand’s Ministry of Public Health, told reporters that the government was raising its alert point from 3 to 4. following a sharp rise in daily infections since the beginning of the year.
This gives the government the authority to introduce a range of tighter restrictions on domestic travel or public gatherings. “Thailand has entered a new wave of infections, where new cases will be rising fast,” Kiattiphum said. “Level four means we may close high-risk places and announce more measures.”
Sebastian Strangio is Southeast Asia Editor at The Diplomat.