Effective Tuesday, December 22, movements are prohibited between 8pm and 4am as had been resolved by a cabinet meeting held on December 14. As of Monday, curfew hours would begin at 9 p.m. all the way through 4 a.m. The directive which will be in place until January 4, as explained by the Government, seeks to ensure safety during the upcoming festive season as far as Covid-19 is concerned. The strict measures that the curfew directive is part of were issued following a spike in Covid-19 cases and fatalities country-wide, mainly reportedly caused by citizens’ negligence in implementing Covid-19 preventive measures. According to a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office last week, all issued guidelines will be reviewed after three weeks upon a health assessment. As the festive season approaches, citizens have been urged to remain on guard and strictly observe all Covid-19 preventive measures. In his annual state of the nation address on Monday, December 21, President Paul Kagame said that it is not yet time to relax vis-à-vis adhering to preventive guidelines. He said: “We have come too far to let our prevention efforts go to waste. This is not the time to relax,” he said, adding that: “This is time to protect our gains and strive for what we want to achieve, and continue to make progress. We have to be responsible for each other’s safety.” So far, overall, Rwanda has 7,293 confirmed cases, of whom 6,091 have already recovered. The country’s Covid-19 death toll stands at 63.
