The closure has been in effect since March 16, 2020, a situation that has caused losses to tourism and commerce.
Peru will maintain the closure of its land borders, in force since March 2020, due to the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic that is registered with a high number of infections and the advance of the omicron variant, the government reported.
The closure of borders “is under permanent evaluation. As soon as we understand that opening borders is not going to generate a major health problem for us, since borders are going to open, ”Health Minister Hernando Cevallos told the press.
“We are not with a non-closure of borders, we are with permanent evaluation of the epidemiological impact of this to make a decision,” he added.
The minister said that it is necessary to “take care of people, despite the fact that economic reactivation is also important in border areas” such as Tacna, on the border with Chile, and Puno with Bolivia.
Cevallos said that January and February will be key months to measure the projection of the pandemic and the scope of the third wave.
The closure of land borders has been in force since March 16, 2020, a situation that has been generating thousands of economic losses in sectors such as tourism and commerce.
Peru seeks to contain the third wave of the pandemic with reduced capacity in shopping centers and vaccination to avoid massive infections.
The government reduced the capacity to 40% in shopping centers, restaurants and closed spaces in 24 provinces of the country, including Lima, classified as a high level of the pandemic.
It also extended the curfew between 11:00 p.m. and 4:00 a.m. local time, which has been in force since Friday.
The Andean country registered more than 12,800 new confirmed cases in one day on Friday, the highest number in nine months. By December, they had reached 1,500 daily diagnoses.
People infected with the omicron variant number 332 in Peru.
The government extended until January 31 the state of emergency in force for 21 months due to the pandemic.
This country of 33 million inhabitants has the highest death rate from covid-19 in the world, with 6,122 deaths per million inhabitants, according to an AFP balance based on official figures.
Likewise, Peru accumulates more than two million cases of covid-19 and more than 202,900 deaths since the start of the pandemic in early 2020. (I)
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