The Ministry of Sports has announced that spectators can now return to stadiums and other sports facilities after the cabinet, held Wednesday, January 26, eased the ban on social gatherings.

The development comes after the ministry, last month, restricted fans from attending sports events to prevent the spread of Covid-19 as the number of new cases hiked amid a highly transmissible Omicron variant.

Sports minister Aurore Mimosa Munyangaju joined thousands of spectators at Kigali Stadium on Thursday as Rayon Sports beat Gasogi United 1-0 to jump into third spot with 26 points on the 16-team league table.

Under fresh guidelines released on Thursday, sports facilities will allow in fans at 50 per cent capacity, and taking a Covid-19 test is not mandatory. However, they will be allowed to access the facilities only if they are fully vaccinated against the virus.

"Fans are allowed in stadiums during local league games at 50 per cent capacity. They must all be vaccinated against Covid-19 and comply with established preventive measures,” a statement, signed by minister Munyangaju, reads in part.

Leocadie Nyirankunzimana, the Public Relations and Communications Officer at the Ministry of Sports, told Times Sport that federations will draft their own guidelines for teams and fans to observe during their competitions.

"Spectators may present the Covid-19 test results or not depending on the guidelines that federations will draft and commit to comply with,” she said in an interview.

Meanwhile, the ministry also gave green light for inter-school competitions to resume. The competitions haven’t taken place since the pandemic arrived in the country in March 2020.

The Schools Sports governing (RSSF) body will be required to issue related preventive measures guiding the competitions.